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Just Journalism Newsletter 23 July 2010 VIEWPOINT:When ideology discounts reality By Carmel Gould Scathing critiques of Israeli policy are the bread and butter of Guardian writer, Rachel Shabi. However, in her latest contribution, 'Israel turns upon its own,' published in print and online, she goes much further than the facts will carry her. Depicting an alleged descent by Israel into 'long-incubated racism, both institutional and incidental - a casual, acceptable prejudice' she blames not Judaism but 'the Eurocentric cornerstones of the country: the belief, expressed by Israel's founding fathers and still current, that the nation should be a bastion of the "enlightened" west in the heart of the supposedly savage Middle East.' However, her attempt to illustrate Israelis' apparent rejection of all things Arab - and presumably Muslim - only serves to highlight the gap between anti-Israel fantasy and a slightly more mundane reality. Shabi claims that Israel is 'the sniffy neighbour of the Middle East,' explaining why 'The ban on travel to most Arab countries is of no consequence to the majority of Israelis, who could not be less interested in the region.' True, Israelis are banned by Israel from travelling to countries such as Lebanon and Syria, but Shabi omits to mention that they are also banned by the countries themselves. Even if a non-Israeli has so much as an Israeli stamp on their passport, they will be denied entry to Lebanon. But what about Arab countries from which Israelis are not banned? Every year, tens of thousands of Israelis travel for tourism purposes to Egypt and Jordan - both countries with peace treaties with Israel - indicating that where they are welcome in the Arab world, Israelis will travel. To continue reading, click here. Netanyahu's offer of direct talks ignored On Wednesday, the Israeli media reported Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' continued refusal to enter direct negotiations with Israel. 'Abbas: U.S. assurances on borders needed before direct peace talks,' published in Haaretz, related how the Palestinian leader 'has vowed to resist U.S. pressure to open direct peace talks with Israel, unless he receives less "vague" guarantees on the issues of Israeli settlement construction and the borders of a future Palestinian state.' This news has not been reported in the mainstream British media, although an examination of coverage of this month's meeting in Washington between Benjamin Netanyahu and Barack Obama provides an insight into why not. It also suggests that future Israeli offers and concessions might, too, be downplayed. On Tuesday 6th July at his meeting with Obama, Netanyahu implored his Palestinian counterpart to come to the table and restart face-to-face negotiations, and did so again in subsequent interviews on Thursday 8 July. However, some newspapers refused to acknowledge this fact, or gave it an incredibly low profile. Of the three articles published in The Guardian on Wednesday, only one included a minor reference to the offer. Chris McGreal quoted the Israeli PM saying 'It is high time to begin direct talks [with the Palestinians].' However, this did not enter the journalist's wider narrative, unlike his comment that 'the Palestinians continue to suspect that Netanyahu is paying lip service to the establishment of their own state in order to pacify the Americans.' To continue reading, click here. Donating to Just Journalism Just Journalism is a not-for-profit organization and relies entirely upon the generosity of our supporters. If you wish to make a donation, please contactmichael@justjournalism.com for more information. For more information about Just Journalism, or to contact us, please visit www.justjournalism.com