The Image of Muhammad al-Dura

The IHT is reporting a new development in the case of Muhammad al-Dura: Two French journalists have now expressed concerns about the footage of young al-Dura's death in September 2000.

The images of 12-year-old Muhammad al-Dura crouching in fear behind his father during a Gaza shootout between Israeli soldiers and Palestinians are iconic in the Arab world, symbols of Israeli monstrousness, and of American support for -- and indifference to -- an extreme brutality that targets children.

Hundreds of poems have been written about the boy, streets and parks in various Arab countries have been named for him, stamps have been issued featuring the images, and a (falsified) montage of his shooting was shown constantly on Palestinian TV during Arafat's extended campaign of anti-Israel media incitement. There was even a PA spot that combined images of al-Dura with a fictitious statement attributed to him, one inviting others to join him in his martyrdom.

There were several camera crews present at the Gaza shootout, but only the Palestinian cameraman for the French TV network France 2 took any images of al-Dura. Those images have been the subject of debate virtually since their original broadcast. In its initial report, France 2 stated unequivocally that the boy was shot by Israelis. In the uproar of outrage that followed, the IDF accepted responsibility for the death, claiming it was unintentional.

Subsequent investigation and reenactments, however, raised questions about whether the Israelis were actually responsible. James Fallows investigated the al-Dura case for The Atlantic in 2003, concluding that "the physical evidence of the shooting was in all ways inconsistent with shots coming from the IDF outpost." A French writer named Gerard Huber argues in his book Contre expertise d'une mise en scene that the al-Dura shooting was a staged event.

France 2's handling of the original, uncut tape has been enigmatic. When a German TV network examined the shooting, it asked for France 2's master tape; France 2 declined to provide it. (The Germans also concluded that the IDF could not have shot al-Dura.) Charles Enderlin, France 2's Jerusalem correspondent, has maintained that it would be unethical to show all the images on the master tape, apparently because it contains images of the boy's death agony. "In view of the fact that some parts of the scene are unbearable," Enderlin wrote to The Atlantic, "France 2 was obliged to cut a few seconds from the scene."

But now two French journalists have seen what France 2 says is the entire 27 minutes of tape shot by the network's cameraman, and there seems to be no such footage. Daniel Leconte, a former correspondent for France 2, and Denis Jeambar, editor in chief of the newsweekly L'Express, note that the image of Muhammad al-Dura "has had great influence," adding carefully that "If this image does not mean what we were told, it is necessary to find the truth." Their essay appeared in the newspaper Le Figaro.

Comments

[drf]

as long as the violence persists, each side will wave its own bloody shirt. as long as there is a media that wishes to play to its viewership before reporting what happened, stuff like this will be a tragic, yet expected, event.

we can remember the fake stories about SH torture or the babies out of the incubators. we can look at this. we can watch different stories on al jazeera. we can remember the story in the egyptian (?) press about saddam personally leading the charge to retake baghdad airport. we can see the look of disappointment on all sides' faces when their beliefs get shattered. and we can get sick of all the lies and distortions out there.

[Shannon Love]

Various Palestinian groups manipulation of the media is legendary among those who make a study of such matters. Fake deaths, fake funerals, fake person in the street interviews, fake stone throwers. etc.

The Palestinians control the news by inserting compromised Palestinians into news crews operating in PA. If the news crew member isn't actually mole they can still control media coverage by threatening to kill the crew member if the news crew files an unfavorable story.

Authoritarian and terror regimes have had to learn how to control the international media through subtle means than a boot to face of the journalist but it is effective nonetheless especially when wide swaths of the media really doesn't seem to care it whether it is being manipulated or not.

[joe]

When American aircraft kill Afghan or Iraqi noncombatants, those deaths are always the fault of the regimes we're fighting.

However, when a Palestinian is struck while caught in the crossfire between Israeli and Palestinian troops, the most important factor in assigning fault is determining which barrel the bullet came out of.

Odd, that.

[dhex]

it's not that odd, joe.

the dead are useful tools for the living, politically-speaking. that rolls in every direction, sadly. (everything from "enemy combatants" to the zionist-imperialist plot to create a genocide in sudan and blame it on muslims, etc)

[Shannon Love]

Joe,

I think you are confusing the moral theoretical and the practical legal responsibilities for civilian deaths.

The moral theoretical are almost entirely a matter of opinion and usually boil down to some variant of "he hit me first!" If your a Leftist, the original cause of conflict and hence the moral blame always falls on the capitalistic elements in the West. If your on the Right, the original cause of the conflict is that the other guy is an anti-democratic aggressor.

Deaths attributed to the actions of liberal democracies such as the U.S. and Israel require careful investigation because the democracies have political an d legal systems that will punish military personnel who kill civilians either intentionally or through negligence.

An Israeli soldier who intentionally kills Palestinian civilians under conditions when those deaths could or should have been avoided will be face investigation and prosecution. There are several dozen Israeli who have been imprisoned for illegal actions.

On the other-hand, if a Palestinian intentionally sets out to murder as many Israeli citizens as possible and succeeds beyond his wildest dreams, he is hailed by the Palestinians as a great hero. There is no investigation as nobody in the Palestinian population has any regard whatsoever for the lives of Israelis. The only contretemps that every erupts internally is when various competing groups squabble over who gets credit for the crime.

The same dynamic applies to anywhere a democracy fights.

[SR]

I honestly have to laugh out loud at people like Shannon who denounce the *Palestinians* for manipulating the media.

[joe]

No, Shannon, I'm thinking entirely of the "moral theoretical" responsibility. I doubt that Mr. Freund brought up the poems written about the lad, the television footage, and the ads featuring a young actor exhorting Palestinians to martyrdom in order to make a legalistic point, but a moral one.

If responsibility for a dead Afghan is rightly determined by looking at the source of the conflict, then responsibility for a dead Palestinian is rightly determined by looking at the source of the conflict.

[elvisLives]

drf at February 8, 2005 10:16 AM
we can see the look of disappointment on all sides' faces when their beliefs get shattered.

that will be a sad day indeed

dhex at February 8, 2005 12:27 PM
"...zionist-imperialist plot to create a genocide in sudan and blame it on muslims, etc)"

love a good conspiracy, can you provide references that lead you to this accusation/allegation/assumption, or is this sarcasm on your part. getting more difficult to distinguish.

[dhex]

sarcasm, of course.

i'll dig up some links later. do a search for "sudan" "genocide" and "zionist"

[Gary Gunnels]

joe,

That's what I thought. Here Shannon Love is responding to something you didn't make a comment about.

Deaths attributed to the actions of liberal democracies such as the U.S. and Israel require careful investigation because the democracies have political an d legal systems that will punish military personnel who kill civilians either intentionally or through negligence.

This is one of Shannon Love's typical "idealizations." "Careful investigation" often does not occur in these sorts of situations and often when it does occur its done after a great deal of bitching and resistance.

[SM]

"then responsibility for a dead Palestinian is rightly determined by looking at the source of the conflict"

What, in your opinion, is the source of the conflict, joe ?

[Fill]

"....responsibility for a dead Afghan is rightly determined by looking at the source of the conflict...."

Who is the source of the conflict in Afghanistan? The US, or the Taliban? The Taliban or Al Quaeda? The Pakistanis for supporting the Taliban? Maybe we created the Taliban by sponsoring the Mujahidin. Or did the Soviets start the conflict in Afghanistan when they invaded (1979 or 1885)? How about the anti-communists who murdered Daoud? How much blame should Daoud get for overthrowing King Zahir. Let's throw some blame on the Brits and Russians for their part at the turn of the century. I also blame Babur and the Indians, Bayazid Roshan, Marco Polo, Ghengis Khan, Alexander the Great, and Cyprus....Of course we all realize this conflict began with Darius the Great, right?

I'd play the same 'blame game' with the Israel/Palestine situation, but my computer screen might run out of ink.

[Francis]

Take information of french people organizing themselves to make public the Al dura case in their country.

They make this evolve in France day after day.

English web site: http://www.truthnow.org

French web site: http://www.laveritemaintenant.org (more complete)