PCG's Racist Coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

(May peace soon come to the Holy Land.)

PCG's coverage of the latest round of violence concerning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that has so far killed 199 Palestinians and about 28 Israelis follows a simple script. One side is good. One side is bad, even "satanic". And because of British Israelism this has a nasty racist tinge since PCG (falsely) teaches that white Americans and British are the descendants of the biblical Israelites. PCG's predominantly white leaders think the Jews are white like themselves. This ignores how Israeli Jews may happen to view themselves. Consequently PCG's 1% support the (supposedly white) State of Israel for racist reasons.

Consequently when Israelis are killed it is mourned and condemned by PCG's leaders because they think they are white like (for the most part) themselves. But when Palestinians are killed it is rarely mentioned.One reading PCG's coverage of this topic may not know about the many Palestinians who have been killed since October 1, 2015 who were not committing any of these terrible stabbing attacks.

“It was the latest in a spate of stabbings, shootings and car-rammings by Palestinians that has killed 27 Israelis and a U.S. citizen since October. Israeli forces have killed at least 155 Palestinians, 101 of them assailants according to authorities. Most of the others [54 Palestinians] have died in violent protests.” (Reuters) ...

Israeli forces’ use of lethal violence to suppress anti-occupation protests is barely mentioned. Reuters wrote that “most” of the other Palestinian fatalities “died in violent protests”, which both removes Israeli agency and also manages to infer blame on the part of the protesters themselves. (Ben White, The missing data on the Palestinian revolt, Middle East Monitor, February 5, 2016.)

So by February 5, 2016 about 54 Palestinians had been killed who were not on these terrible stabbing attacks and most of those 54 Palestinians were killed while attending protests. One would never know of such a thing paying attention to PCG's coverage of these events. The pain and suffering of the families and friends of these 54 Palestinians is ignored by PCG's leaders. (The death toll for the Palestinians is now 199.)

Furthermore some of the Palestinians killed appears to have been shot only after they were neutralized and were no longer a threat according to a report by the Israeli human rights organization B'Tselem. Deadly force appears to have been used when it was unnecessary.

Since October 2015 there have been dozens of assaults on civilians and members of Israel’s security forces. These assaults have taken the form of stabbings, car-rammings and gunfire in which Palestinians killed 16 civilians and three members of Israel’s security forces. Up to 11 December 2015, 71 of the assailants were shot dead by members of the security forces or civilians.

This wave of violent assaults is appalling, and clearly Israel’s security forces must protect the public and use the force necessary to that end, as determined by the circumstances. The law on this matter is also clear: shooting to kill is permissible only in cases that a person poses mortal danger to others. However, in at least some of the cases, firing at the assailants did not cease even after they no longer posed any danger. Some were injured and lying motionless on the ground when they were shot dead. In other cases, the very use of live gunfire seems excessive. Some cases were summary executions, without the benefit of law or trial. (B'Tselem, Unjustified use of lethal force and execution of Palestinians who stabbed or were suspected of attempted stabbings, December 16, 2015.)

PCG never talks about troubling matters such as this.

Shamefully but predictably PCG's racist coverage of the latest round of violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict continues unabated.

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• Brent Nagtegaal, Stabbings Continue in Jerusalem, February 9, 2016.

In this article Nagtegaal discusses the killing of Hadar Cohen, a 19 year old Israeli who had only just started being a security officer. Nagtegaal saw an ambulance that he later learned was heading for the scene of that violent attack. No doubt it must have been terrible and quite chilling to learn of that. But the high death toll for Palestinians is not mentioned. It seems to be unworthy of mention as far as PCG's 1% is concerned.

• Brent Nagtegaal, The Battle Over The Bible's Place in Archaeology, The Trumpet Daily, March 7, 2016.  

It is mentioned that he met with Dr. Eilat Mazar and that at present it is not known when they will be able to excavate again. In all this discussion the high death toll among the Palestinians is never mentioned.

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On March 9, 2016 in another terrible act of this ongoing round of violence a US citizen and veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, Taylor Force, was murdered by a Palestinian on a stabbing attack in Jaffa, Tel Aviv. His wife was also injured in the attack. With the lack of a political settlement, alas, more terrible violence such as that is bound to occur. Only a political settlement can end this terrible violence. We cannot wait for Christ to return. Political solutions need to be found now.

This terrible murder is mentioned by PCG's leaders afterwards.

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• Stephen Flurry, Only Germany Can ‘Save Europe’ and the Truth About the Palestinian ‘Peacemaker’, The Trumpet Daily, March 10, 2016, 0-15 minutes.

Here Stephen Flurry accuses Mahmoud Abbas of praising and encouraging the stabbing attacks that have occurred since October 2015. It is ignored that there is security coordination between the State of Israel and Fatah. Only recently has that been disrupted due to the widespread violence.

At one point Stephen Flurry says that the State of Israel used to be an ally of the United States insinuating that it is no longer an ally of the United States. That is nonsense. The US government supplies to the State of Israel the equivalent of $10.2 million in (mainly military) aid per day. The US government supplies 20% of Israel's military expenditure. 

The United States currently underwrites 20 percent of Israel's military budget through annual earmarks of $3.1 billion in weapons. (Josh Ruebner, "Military aid to Israel and US complicity", The Hill, November 9, 2015.) 

How dare Stephen Flurry should say such a terribly misleading statement to insinuate that the State of Israel is no longer an ally of the United States. This allegation is clearly wrong. We deserve to have accurate information about world news not nonsensical hyperbole.

At one point Stephen Flurry insinuates that 100 million Muslims have a favorable opinion of ISIL and of violence. That is Islamophobic nonsense. Most Muslims hate ISIL.

And in all his vitriol there is no mention of the high death toll among Palestinians.

• Brent Nagtegaal and Joel Hilliker, Week in Review, Trumpet Hour, March 11, 2016, 23-28 minutes.

Nagtegaal says Israelis feel helpless. There is no thought about how Palestinians would feel about the situation considering that about 180 Palestinians have violently died since October 1, 2015.

(This broadcast also features a segment by Joel Hilliker and the neo-McCarthyite Andrew Müller scare mongering about some advertising campaign for Japan's military (45-48 minutes). PCG has a long history of demonizing Japan which continues the practice of HWA's WCG. PCG does continues to scare monger against Japan to this day.)

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So 199 Palestinians get shot to death or otherwise die a violent death to the severe distress of their families and friends since October 1, 2015 and PCG's leaders seem to think that is not something worthy of mention.

If those 199 were Israeli Jews PCG's 1% would loudly proclaim that it is a sign that the end is coming and condemn such things most strongly. But they don't because Palestinians are not favored by PCG's leaders. This refusal to treat the lives of Israeli Jews and Palestinians equally is racist.

It is shameful and racist that PCG's leaders seem to view the lives of Palestinian people so cheaply.

Only a political solution can solve the current crisis in the Holy Land and bring peace to the Holy Land. Israelis and Palestinians deserve to live in peace and safety. May peace soon come to the Holy Land.