Neda in Palestine, Sentenced to Die Alone

For over a week, major American news outlets have broadcast on a virtual loop the video of the killing of Neda Agha-Soltan, an unarmed 26-year-old Iranian woman, by Iranian security services. The poignant footage of Neda dying before a throng of grief-stricken bystanders crystallized the vulnerability experienced by the millions of demonstrators who have filled cities across Iran to confront authoritarian forces determined to suppress their voice through brutal means. When the mainstream American press chose to broadcast the graphic video -- as moving as the footage is, it is difficult to watch -- it made a commendable decision that nonetheless highlighted its hypocritical attitude towards Palestinians who resist Israeli occupation on a daily basis, and who often meet the same fate as Neda.

Every week, in the Palestinian cities of Bi'lin and Ni'ilin, local residents demonstrate beside international and Israeli solidarity activists for their basic human rights. The Israeli separation wall has been constructed through the heart of their communities, cutting them off permanently from farmland they have worked for generations. The Israeli Supreme Court ruled that the path of the wall was illegal, but construction continued unabated. When the demonstrators mobilize non-violently to stop the wall's construction -- to demand that the rule of law be honored -- the Israeli army has responded with massive force, killing, maiming, and brutalizing them on a consistent basis.

Video of the Israeli army's shootings of Palestinians demonstrators are easily accessible through YouTube. The army's unprovoked killing of Bassem Abu Rahem, a respected activist from Bi'lin affectionately nicknamed "The Elephant," can be viewed here at 3:15. Similarly, video of Yusuf Aqel Srur's body being rushed into a Red Crescent ambulance after an Israeli sniper killed him with a .22 round to the chest (Srur was at the time attending the funeral of Ahmed Musa, an 11-year-old boy shot in the head by an Israeli soldier through a jeep's rifle slit) can be watched here at 2:50.

Demonstrator Bassem Abu Rameh is shot to death by Israeli soldiers at 3:15

Demonstrator Yusuf Akil Srur is shot to death by Israeli soldiers at 2:50 while attending a funeral for an 11-year-old neighbor also killed by the Israeli army

These videos are no less outrageous than the video of Neda's death. However, to my knowledge, no outlet from the mainstream American media has ever broadcast them. And as far as I know, no cable news program, including liberal-leaning shows like Olbermann and Maddow, have never even mentioned the non-violent protests in Bi'lin and Ni'ilin, or Israel's brutal response. The videos remain unseen by America eyes. The struggles of Bi'lin and Ni'lin do not even play in Peoria.

Direct action protest tactics only work if the brutal responses they provoke are recorded by influential media sources and projected to sympathetic audiences across the world. MLK's tactics in Selma would not have succeeded had he not been accompanied by camera crews ready to broadcast images of racist savagery to outraged Northern white liberals. The outpouring of American public sympathy for Iranian demonstrators might never have occurred had cable news outlets not made the courageous decision to broadcast Neda's killing vividly and repeatedly.

Yet when Palestinians employ direct action tactics to protest Israeli oppression, and when Israeli forces respond with wanton brutality, they are ignored by the US media, even when footage is already available through online sources. It seems they can only generate media when they resort to violence, a dynamic the Israeli government obviously welcomes. Perhaps it's no wonder only 6% of Americans declared in a recent poll that the US should stand behind the Palestinians in Middle East peace talks. The legitimacy of their struggle is denied no matter how they conduct it.

Comments

[Justtellthetruth]

Great article Max. Please keep up the inspiring and hard work.

[Garrison Cat]

This article by Max Blumenthal is pure outrageous one sided anti Israeli propoganda of the worst sort!

[DC]

Explain your comment. How so?

Blumenthal articulately points out the terrible hypocrisy of the media use of the horrific death of Neda yet ignores so many similar killings of Palestinians who peacefully protest.

Please exactly point out how that is outrageous.

[Olamkatan]

Neda's death will be vindicated. Hundreds, if not thousands, of Iranians are already rioting in the streets of Tehran. Note that the rioters are yelling "Death to the dictator", and NOT "Death to Israel."
So if this is about Neda's death, let's not tarnish that with someone else's agenda. Let Neda's death be about Iran, not Israel.

[stardust835]

Wrong! What is horrifying about Neda's death is that she was killed brutally while she was protesting unarmed by Basij with guns. It's a violation of decency and human rights AND it applies to the deaths of Palestinia­n/British/­American protestors who die with a horrifying regularity at the hands of the Israeli authorities with guns.

[yaelal]

Any comparison between the actions of Iran and Israel is not only spurious but downright despicable
The Iranian regime has deliberately murdered and brutalized its own people
Israel uses non-lethal measures such as rubber bullets and tear gas
Accidents happen once in a while but on the whole the intention is not murder of inoccent people

[arle]

"Non-lethal methods," huh?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ov3Qs8CjPRw

And you forgot to mention that Israel uses rubber /coated/ bullets which are only slightly less lethal than real bullets.

You didn't even watch the videos up there, did you? Not surprising, you're another spam account -- made this post within five minutes of generating it, and this is the only comment you bothered to make. Hit and run.

[judysrulke]

I think everyone needs to step back from our perceptions of the conflict in the middle east. Israel is only a tiny percentage of the land in the middle east and the only country in which Jews, Muslims, Christians and other faiths have full civil rights. I cannot believe that Mr Blumenthal is advocating for the expansion of governments that deny civil rights to their own populations. Israel is surrounded by countries that deny cilvil rights to their own populations, where the majority of the poulations are Arabic speaking Muslims. One cannot blame all of the problems in the middle east on the one tiny country that is struggling to maintain civil rights. Israel evacuated all Jewish residents of Gaza and so far the Gaza Strip which was proposed as a model for a future Palestinian State, has succeeded only in making life difficult for Israelis living nearby without improving life for its own citizens.

Palestinians can create an independent state and a viable future as soon as they start focusing on creating their own state rather than destroying Israel.

[arle]

"I cannot believe that Mr Blumenthal is advocating for the expansion of governments that deny civil rights to their own populations"

Maybe that's because he isn't.

You guys can stop the anti-Palestinian hate speech any day now. It's not working.

[BackToFight]

Funny, you mention that every one has full civil rights. Then what are all of these Palestinians complaining about?

[stardust835]

"Palestinians can create an independent state" Where? They might need water, too. So the settlers have been taking Palestinian land because Palestinians want to destroy Israel. Its like George Orwell. It appears to me that Israel has been hell bent on destroying any chance of Palestinian state.

[WinnieD]

Naqba, I agree. And what's more there are tons of Arabs in Israel. They vote, serve in the army, participate in all national sports and culture and are more prosperous there than in Arab-ruled countries. Arab rights in Israel are so much more than Jews in Arab lands. As for hospitals and so forth - Israel treats all the Palestinians in Israeli hospitals and Israel supports them in many ways (which they need because they live under the brutal fundamentalist Hamas regime - worse even than the Iranian one responsible for the killing of the girl in the article above, with horrifying and savage punishments for the slightest un-fundamentalist behavour.)
Israel never bombed those UN schools anyway - I think that was exposed Hamas disinformation a long time ago, much like the videos in the article. As for the food supplies that Hamas said were inadequate, someone did the calculations and if Hamas's version were to be believed, every Palestinian would be drowning in flour.

[arle]

Yet another slanderous attack. An accusation that the videos are fake with no substantiation whatsoever.

Nakba denial is just as heinous as shoah denial. Join the club.

[NedaEverywhere]

It's an inconvenient truth for some, but nakba is made up. What the "real" nakba to the arabs is that hitler didn't finish what they were helping him do.

[Olamkatan]

The videos ARE fake, arle. But you refuse to look at ,or believe, other source material unless it comes from YOUR "reliable" sources, so I guess we're at a stalemate.

[Olamkatan]

Winnie, I've been to Israel, too, and have seen the Arab villages, well-to-do ones, all over the country.
Not only do Israeli doctors treat Palestinians in Israeli hospitals - but Palestinian doctors also treat Israelis in Israeli hospitals! I know because I had the misfortune of being in the hospital while I was there (nothing major) and the doctor who treated me was Arab.
Most of the people posting here are self-professed experts on a subject they haven't a clue about.

[BackToFight]

In 1995 a Palestinian friend of mine invited me to his town in the West Bank, a town which is quickly being encroached upon by illegal settlements. As an American who barely gets out of the US, I jumped at the opportunity. His cousin, a martial arts expert, ran a class for Palestinian children in the same town. The focus of the class was not to teach the children how to fight, but rather to train them to absorb physical punishment from IDF soldiers. One evening, after curfew, IDF soldiers came to his house, dragged him out and beat him within an inch of his life. We all had to stand there and watch, as everyone was held at bay by soldiers pointing guns at us. This man never conducted any violence toward Israelis. He was a teacher.

Years later I was told that on a walk home with his wife and 3 kids, he was attacked by a settler who threatened him and his family with a gun. He was shot in the leg, wrestled the gun away from the settler and shot and killed the settler in self defense, all while he was bleeding from his leg. Guess what happened to him? Life in jail for murder. They wouldn't even hear his self defense claim.

Just thought I would share a personal experience that is in line with what Mr. Blumenthal is writing about.

[arle]

Thank you for sharing that. I haven't yet had the opportunity to visit Palestine myself but I have some friends who went to the West Bank in 2005 as part of an international effort to restore the some of the olive trees that the Israelis have been uprooting. She had photos... of the wall, of house demolitions and orchard razings in progress, of checkpoints. She even has photos of herself being dragged uphill to get her away from a house demolition -- to be fair, these soldiers were careful with here as she's a older women and she's obviously American (certainly caucasian) and one suspects the soldiers were afraid of causing another Rachel Corrie incident.

The most beautiful for me that she described, however, was the hospitality of Palestinians. Whether they were Christian or Muslim, and regardless of how tough things were, the Palestinians of the West Bank were always willing to take strangers in and give them the best meal they could offer.

People should go out and meet Palestinians in your communities for yourselves, though. Don't take our words for it -- go make your own inroads, and judge for yourselves whether the Palestinians fit the awful stereotypes foisted upon us by people like those below.

[Heaphy]

Here's a chance for me to agree with arle. Every individual social interaction I've ever had with Palestinians, whether here in the United States or in the Middle East, where I've visited twice, has shown them to be gracious and thoughtful hosts. On a one-to-one basis, they treat visitors with kindness and courtesy. My criticism is not of the Palestinians as human beings but rather with their political misleadership.

Germans and Japanese could be absolutely wonderful as individual human beings 60 year ago. The graciousness of white Southerners in the 1850s was legendary. The same can be said of the North Koreans today. I am one of the very few Americans who has actually had lengthy conversations with North Koreans. Those wonderful individual human beings, though, have had the misfortune to live in societies led by political factions of murderous thugs. Such is also the misfortune of the Palestinian people in the last 70 years. The result has been terrible suffering for the Israelis and far worse suffering for the Palestinian people themselves.

- Jim Heaphy

[Olamkatan]

Yes, they're very, very gracious. And they're great cooks. And Arabic food is absolutely delicious. And if you've ever sat down to converse with a Palestinian, as I have on many opportunities, they will be more than happy to discuss politics with you...and they will smile and be engaging...UNTIL you offer a different opinion. Just tell them what you really think of Arafat, for example (and remember that Arafat bilked his people out of millions of dollars) and watch the smile immediately vanish.
Personally, I'm not seduced by warmth and graciousness.

[Olamkatan]

What was the name of the village? How did you meet your Palestinian friend, and what would have encouraged you to visit his village in the West Bank, given the fact that you're an American who barely gets out of the U.S.? A rather unusual story, I must say. Unusual indeed.

[MMS1]

Mr. Blumenthal, where are the You tube video links to the mass genocide going on in Kenya or China? Is the American media "hypocritical" for reporting on Neda instead of these as well? Or is Blumenthal revealing his own bias by using the killing of an Iranian girl by the Iranian goverment in the name of Iranian politics as a plateform to discuss a completely different country whose civil unrest is born of completely different history and completely different politics? Iranians are protesting for reasons totally seperate from Palestinians, and comparing government responses to these totally different scenarios of civil unrest makes absolutely no sense. The title of this article is completely inappropriate, as it has nothing to do with Neda or the political situation in Iran; it is simply the author's way of using current popular events to sucker people into reading his own personal thoughts and agendas. .

[arle]

You're a bit late. The hasbara squad's been here and gone. I'm afraid there's no appetizers left. You can go back the the right wing blog that sent you here -- don't let the screen door hit you on the posterior on your way out.

[MMS1]

Hasbara? Where did that come from? My comment was neither pro nor anti Isreali diplomacy tactics, it was commenting on the inappropriateness of comparing two completely unrelated and unrelatable circumstances. Your responses to people's comments (your OH SO MANY responses to everyone's comments on this article) are becoming increasingly angry and illogical. Why are you taking all opposition to this article so personally Max....uh, I mean, ARLE....?

[Heaphy]

Still no response from arle regarding my refutation of his/her charge that I am a "hasbara spammer". I challenged arle and others to take a look at my profile to verify that I've been commenting on HuffingtonPost since January, 2008 - far longer than arle. I comment 425 times on a wide variety of topics - not just Israel vs. Palestine as does arle. None of my comments were canned, regurgitated or made due to anyone else's marching orders. I strive to see both sides and to find common ground. What I say comes from my own true heart and my independent mind - I've been speaking out on politics actively for 41 years now.

Arle and Sentientbeing09 operate under the delusion that HuffingtonPost is their own personal sandbox and that they have the power to make newcomers feel unwelcome. In that, they are utterly wrong. HuffPo is a free speech zone, where genuine political debate is encouraged - a real give and take. It seems that they mistake mockery, insult and simulated laughing (LOL, haha, heheheheh) for informed political discussion. Pehaps they don't realize how childish that appears to more mature, thoughtful people.

I've been trying since yesterday morning to engage these folks in substantive discussion of the issues. They just might be surprised to learn that I may agree with them on some important points. But they are afraid of grown-up debate. It's too bad.

- Jim Heaphy

[NedaEverywhere]

Wow!! That was an amazing bunch of words that said nothing with regard to the points made!!! Is MMS1 incorrect, or was it an inconvenient truth (you guys love those words, doncha?) that you can't counter, so instead you resort to typical leftism.

Here.....let me see if I can do "left"......
It's a shame that the ovens that didn't exist in Germany weren't kept running just one more day so that perhaps Blumenthal genes wouldn't have made it west.

[BackToFight]

Stunning tactic!!! Divert attention from the topic and confuse the reader of what the focus of the article is. What were we talking about again? Oh yeah, Israel's crimes against civilian Palestinians who were not causing any harm to any one.

Every where you look on this topic, in these blogs, defenders of Israeli aggression use this same tactic over and over again. They are always quick to point out US aggression, or how Israel, regardless of its faults, is still not as bad as any of the Arabic-speaking or Muslim countries surrounding it. It's not a competition to see which country is the biggest criminal, it's about not committing crimes all together.

[BackToFight]

When it comes down to it, they are a very small contingency and their past listeners are now opening their eyes to the truth. Every where I look there growing numbers of Americans, Europeans, and even Jews who now realize that these people spin lies like webs. God bless the internet for allowing the half interested, apathetic human being who ate up their lies for so long to have access to the truth.

I only fear that when the world stops listening to them they will engage in acts of violence and war-mongering to keep their colonialist dreams alive. God knows they have the propensity for it.

[Heaphy]

Are there any Palestinian political groups at all that have a propensity for violence? Are there those that don't? In your view, is a propensity for violence a human attribute, or is it unique to the Zionists? Who are the Mohandas K. Gandhis, the Nelson Mandelas and the Martin Luther King Jrs of the Palestinian national movement?

I agree, "God bless the Internet", which is freely available in Israel to all - Jews, Muslims, Christians and atheists. Even to Hindus. In Israel, you can go into a bookstore and buy or order any book, magazine or newspaper published anywhere in the world. Please note that the Internet is censored in many Muslim countries, and their bookstores and newstands are ruthlessly censored too.

I oppose the censorship of all political videos, including the one that Max Blumenthal recently filmed about the drunken racism of Israeli teenagers. Did you expect an accused "hasbara spammer" to say that?

- Jim Heaphy

[arle]

"Who are the Mohandas K. Gandhis, the Nelson Mandelas and the Martin Luther King Jrs of the Palestinian national movement?"

Dead. Israel has a nasty habit of assassinating any Palestinian who takes on leadership qualities, remember? They even routinely open fire on peaceful protesters -- videos above, Exhibit A.

[Olamkatan]

Unfortunately for you, you're dead wrong. More organizations are turning around to back Israel and her policies solidly, and all for the simple reason that most people CAN distinguish genuine truth from lies. A bad idea is always trumped by a better one. And believe it or not, Zionism is a much better idea - and ideal - than Islamic terrorism. And, unlike yourself, the vast majority of people are more concerned about Iran's building a nuclear bomb than Israel building houses in disputed terriroty.

[Naqba]

Breaking news: Arab intransigence and the realization that Iran nukes might be more important than Jewish houses are leading the Obama administration to a slight shift in policy.

The San Francisco Sentinel reports that “the U.S. administration has not been successful in securing commitments from Arab countries to take steps toward normalizing relations with Israel.” Similar reports appear in other news sources around the world.

The reports say that not only would Arab countries, led by Saudi Arabia, not move towards normalization with Israel while Israel continues with settlement construction, but they would also not do so even if Israel agrees to freeze building in Judea and Samaria.

“In such a situation,” the source is quoted as saying, “the Americans can’t continue demanding gestures only from Israel, such as the demand that Israel freeze settlement construction.”

[arle]

No link, no sourcing, no credibility? No surprise.

[Heaphy]

You talk about "credibility", arle, when just yesterday you falsely accused me of being a "hasbara spammer", and didn't even have the courtesy to respond to my detailed refuation of your attack. This website thought MY response was noteworthy enough to award it a "HuffPost's Pick". What say you, arle?

- Jim Heaphy

[Naqba]

No "please"? No surprise.

[Olamkatan]

The sources are everywhere. Just open your newspaper, arle.

[arle]

The wagging of the dog continues, apparently.

[BackToFight]

They're just late to the party. As soon as they are given orders to attack another person's credibility they will go away.

[WinnieD]

It seems to me that Mr Blumenthal is using smoke and mirrors. It was the fundamentalist regime which did this thing to that poor girl. Suddenly, and predictably from the anti-Semitic Left, Mr Blumenthal has to blame the Jews for Iranian brutality! I bet if Mr Blumenthal forgets his umberella, it is some evidence of a Jewish plot to get him wet.

I think this intense anti-Semitism is often the result of self-loathing by Left wing middle classes, including some Jews, who want to identify with the masses or some peasants, or something similar and despise their own kind or comfortable background. If they say they ooze sympathy and sentiment, then we will think they are good, or poor or innocent.

As for those endless Youtube faked videos, they have been exposed too many times. There is even footage of a director faking the shots and retaking the staged reaction, on director's command, from the crowds. Check out Little Green Footballs website for some eye-openers.

Huffington - you need to report Iranian atrocities such as this in the context of Iran. Its a no-brainer.

[arle]

How about reporting atrocities in this context?
http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/deutschland-uber-alles/

Nice trifecta, by the way.You brought up both the anti-Semitic left and the self loathing Jew stereotypes, labeled all gentiles as "peasants" and made a denial of physical evidence worthy of Richard Williamson. Congrats! Have fun associating with the right wing. You should read up on Prescott Bush and Henry Ford some time. Very enlightening.

[Naqba]

Winnie D is exactly right. Self-loathing Jews are Jews who cannot shake their identification with victims. Could be because the Jewish people were victimized for 2000 years, so that makes us experts on the subject.
Strangely, though, they'd rather kick than be kicked, so this misplaced sympathy only goes so far.
And where did she label all gentiles "peasants"? She didn't write that, you only misconstrued the remark.

[Sentientbeing09]

Holy cow!

I just re-read your post and earlier I missed the line that said youre a LittleGree­nFootballs reader.

Sorry. I cant take anything you say seriously beyond this point.

How are you enjoying Charles Johnsons recent swing to the Left and endless obsession with Creationism? Hows that going down with the LGF Lizardoids Faithful? Are you one of the backstabbers who left to join LGF2.0 or one of the loyal ones? Did you enjoy the LGF Bunker Parody and see any truth in it?

Ha ha!

I love this place.

[WinnieD]

Dear Mr Sentient being09,

I shall answer your points,

Yes, I read lots of information; including the most excellent LGF which you seem to dislike a tad.

I believe Charles Johnsons is the man who runs LGF and I didn't know he had left wing views. How interesting.
I dislike Creationism as I am a great admirer of the admirable Mr Charles Darwin.
The rest of your message seems to be something from a programme I watched as a child called Startreck. I don't really speak Trecky and I don't like Lizards.
If you don't take my views seriously, I am glad you find amusement.

Yours sincerely, Winnie

[Heaphy]

Though I believe that Palestinian terrorism is the greatest obstacle to peace, I do not absolve the Israelis of their share of the blame. They shunned negotiations with the PLO for far too long, allowing groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad to gain strength as alternatives. The settlements in the West Bank are deeply problematic, but they have evacuated some settlements there, and abandoned settlements in the Sinai 30 years ago and in Gaza 4 years ago. Israeli politics is often paralyzed by the power of smaller fringe parties in their fragile coalition governments, but at least they have a viable parliamentary system with a free press, regular elections and participation by Arab political parties.

My hope is that the Obama administration will be able to encourage both sides to make painful concessions to deal with the core issues that have prevented a comprehensive peace before now. I remain an optimist.

- Jim Heaphy

[Naqba]

That was a very good post, Jim, and quite fair-minded. I have to say that the Israelis were always at the table and ready to negotiate with the Palestinians, and indeed Israel is prepared to stop further settlements if only the Palestinians would show good intent - which, unfortunately, they never had. Even Bill Clinton said they "never lost an opportunity to lose an opportunity."

You have to understand, from Israel's perspective, that it's hard to sit down at the same table with people that have invaded your schools and murdered your children (Ma'alot, 1974), murdered your Olympic athletes (Munich, 1972), cooperated with Hitler in planning your extermination (Grand Mufti of Jerusalem), threw an old Jewish man from his wheelchair into the sea (Leon Klinghoffer, 1985), and in general target the weakest and most helpless of your people. This is just the very short list, by the way.

You seem like a reasonable person and can draw your own conclusions as to who is REALLY blocking negotiations for a genuine peace in the region.

[arle]

Total lie about what Bill Clinton said. He actually blames the assasination of Yitzahk Rabin by Jewish extremists. Let's quote a credible commentator, shall we?

http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/04/18/israelis_just_dont/

I'm amused by the fact that you bring every single other possible factor into this, even going so far as to make a comparison between the Palestinians and the Nazis, and yet we compare a video of an Iranian getting shot at a political protest to Palestinians getting shot at a political protests, and you say that any sort of comparison whatsoever is /completely/ basis. The irony is veritably toxic.

[Heaphy]

I see a tendentious tone in the article and in many of the comments on both sides. This is understandable perhaps, but regrettable and not very constructive. If one is to retain any hope of peace, it is best to avoid demonizing one's opponents, and strive to find even a shred of common ground and shared humanity.

I am distrustful of zealots and fanatics on both sides. This is my opinion: The greatest obstacle to the achievement of an independent and viable Palestinian state is that wide segments of the Palestinian leadership for many decades have advocated and carried out deliberate attacks against Israeli civilians as a means to advance their cause. The word "terrorism" is most commonly used. The impact of these attacks is seared into the minds of Israeli voters, and in my opinion, has been entirely counterproductive. It has caused resistance to compromise among the Israelis, extreme factionalism and infighting among Palestinian political groups, and grevious suffering for BOTH the Israeli and Palestinian populations.

- Jim Heaphy

[arle]

LOL! Four posts in a row (including the one above this) and you are not a hasbara spammer. Riiight.

[Heaphy]

HuffPost's Pick

Listen, arle, and check me out before you accuse me of spamming. I've been posting comments on Huffington Post since January, 2008, far longer than you. Unlike you, I don't hide behind anonymity and instead post under my real name You can Google me and learn all about me. I am the Jim Heaphy who lives in American Canyon, CA. I've made 425 comments to date on Huffington Post, the vast majority in support of Barack Obama's candidacy. Before today, I've only commented on the Middle East once or twice. I am interested in many different issues, but I've been studying the Middle East for 40 years and have traveled there twice.

The reason for four posts in a row is that I wrote a long essay that exceeded the Huffington Post's word limits. I broke it into four chunks but you can read it in order as a single essay. That's not spamming. Feel free to disagree with me, but I would appreciate you responding to political content, instead of typing simulated laughter and sarcasm accompanied by utterly false and unsupported accusations of spamming. I would hope that you are a better and fairer person than that.

- Jim Heaphy

[Heaphy]

That being said, I do not think that the comparison between the killing of Neda Agha-Soltan and the incidents shown in these videos is convincing. These videos, especially the first one, show direct confrontations between disciplined, committed (and brave) militants and Israeli armed forces. In the first video, we see a coordinated attempt to try to breach or compromise the Israeli security fence. The Israelis state that the purpose of this fence is to prevent infiltration by suicide bombers and other terrorists. Anyone engaging in such a protest well knows that the risks are grave. Accounts of Neda's killing say that she was simply an observer or passive participant in an enormous mass protest on the public streets of Tehran. I think that even those who believe that the Israelis are wrong and the security fence is wrong should be able to see the distinction.

- Jim Heaphy

[stardust835]

FYI Bassem Abu Rajem believed in non-violent protest and organized marches like the ones you saw. You refer to him as "militants" and say he should have expected to be killed for marching against a wall being built through his own land. You also refer to the "Israeli security fence". I guess it all depends which side of the fence you are on. The Berlin wall was I'm sure, to someone a "security fence", although it served a different purpose. I think you make Mr. Blumenthal's point for him. For some people, the only acceptable Palestinian is one that is not present.

The horror of Neda, Shorab and the other Iranian dead who have been counted yet is that they were unarmed and protesting and were killed.

You wan't have to worry about Max's next video where he interviews people of Tel Aviv because its already been censored by Huffington Post as of today.