From: Ali Abunimah
To: morning@npr.org, nprnews@npr.org
Subject: Targeted Violence, Targeted Silence

April 24, 2001

Dear NPR News,

Yesterday four Israelis were lightly injured by what you described as a "pipe bomb," near Tel Aviv, and a Palestinian child was killed when Israeli occupation forces opened fire at a funeral in the occupied Gaza Strip. You reported the four injured Israelis, but not the dead Palestinian boy or the approxmately 15 other Palestinians injured by Israeli gunfire.

Today at least four Palestinians, including a 75-year old man were injured by Israeli shelling of residential neighborhoods in Gaza and the shooting of taxi driver at a checkpoint in the occupied West Bank according to wire services. The three injured in Israeli shelling near Rafah, Gaza were reported to be suffering from moderate to serious injuries from Israeli shrapnel, according to AFP.

Al-Jazira also showed thousands of people attending the funeral in Khan Yunis for Muhannad Muharib, the boy killed by the occupation forces yesterday. You have not reported any of the these events. I listened to today's news bulletins at 7, 7.30, 8, 8.30 and 9 AM Eastern Time.

Since Sunday, NPR has reported only on violence against Israelis, thus giving listeners the false impression that Israelis are the principal victims of the ongoing occupation and the Palestinian response to it. Weekend Edition Sunday featured a three-minute report by Jennifer Ludden on a bombing in Kfar Saba which killed the bomber, one Israeli and injured several dozen others. The report, as usual, featured actuality from the scene and the voices of understandably angry and terrified Israeli eyewitnesses.

The irresponsible double-standard in your coverage of Palestinian-Israeli violence is a consistent and deeply-embedded feature of NPR's reporting that it seems no one is willing to take responsibility for or address.

You are not only failing on a day to day basis to report specific incidents of violence against Palestinians, but to convey the reality that Israeli violence is daily, widespread and relentless against the entire population of the occupied territories.

This is just a note for the record that your policy of devaluing Palestinian lives continues today as it did yesterday.

Sincerely,

Ali Abunimah
http://www.abunimah.org