GU Special Reports - Hizbullah: the new heroes on the streets of Ramallah

[scarletwoman]

Rory McCarthy in Ramallah
Saturday August 26, 2006
The Guardian

On the back wall of Mohammad Sharak's taxi dispatch office, next to the pictures of the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and below gilded Qur'anic verses, are two new posters: portraits of Hassan Nasrallah, the Hizbullah leader.

Since war erupted between Israel and the Lebanese militia, Hizbullah has emerged as a new hero on Palestinian streets. Shops and cafes in Ramallah and other towns are sporting Hizbullah posters. Stalls are selling Hizbullah's yellow flag, alongside the Lebanese flag. In the eyes of many Palestinians, Hizbullah struck a rare blow against the Israeli military, despite the huge cost in civilian casualties and damage in Lebanon.

<snip>

In a small upstairs office, not far from the taxi dispatch firm, is the Minbar al-Islah, or the Platform of Reform, a Hamas newspaper. Sari Orabi, 26 and just six months out of an Israeli jail, is the deputy editor. "What happened in Lebanon increased the belief of people living in the area that resistance is the only language that the occupation understands," he said.

<snip>

Although there are many posters of Hassan Nasrallah in Ramallah, there are even more of Ramzi Obaid, a West Bank commander of the al-Aqsa militants, which is allied to the Fatah organisation. He was arrested by the Israelis this month. Abu Rida said there was little inclination to seek a political solution now. "The Israelis only understand the language of force. I think we'll be fighting them from here until judgment day."

I hope folks will read the whole piece, it's quite interesting.

sw

[Jim__]

1. Do you have a link?

[IndianaGreen]

3. Here is the link

http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,,1858716,00.html

[scarletwoman]

4. Oops! Sorry. Didn't mean to omit the link -- but I see IG posted it.

But here it is anyway:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,,1858716,00.html

[Fredda Weinberg]

2. Apparently, not everyone is fooled

In the end, posters of Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah would not be plastered around this tiny Sunni Muslim village in southern Lebanon mourning the loss of 23 of its own, slain in an Israeli air attack during the month-long war with Hezbollah.

"Why do you want to put up an image of someone who is killing us?" one man screamed as a mob of dozens waved their fists and thrust open palms toward Nasrallah supporters clutching posters of the bearded and bespectacled Hezbollah chief. "We don't want to see it!"

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/754971.html

[scarletwoman]

5. Perhaps you did not notice that the OP is about Palestinians, not Lebanon.

I thought it was an interesting report on the various Palestinian opinions about Hizbullah, which is why I urged people to follow the link (which I unfortunately neglected to include -- oops) and read the whole article. On the other hand, I assume most people know that Ramallah is a Palestinian town, not Lebanese.

As for your Haaretz article, it's about the same village as the NYT article already posted here

You might want to post your link in that thread, since the Haaretz article has some other details not featured in the NYT piece.

sw

[Fredda Weinberg]

6. I'll post where relevant

And both articles describe reactions to Hezbollah. I think mine, from those victimized by Nazrallah's "stunt", is more telling. Remember, Palestinians also danced on 9/11.

[scarletwoman]

7. Whatever. And I can hardly blame the Palestinians - or ANYONE in the ME

for experiencing some schadenfreude over an attack on the U.S. It's human nature to want to see those whom you consider to be complicit in causing you misery to be on the receiving end of some misery themselves. I can understand where they're coming from -- why should they love America? I wouldn't, were I in their situation.

sw

[IndianaGreen]

8. Thank you for spreading rightwing propaganda.

Remember, Palestinians also danced on 9/11.

I hear this crap on Faux News all the time.

Go to the DU archives, the old DU, and you will find out how the pictures of Palestinian dancing in the aftermath of 9-11 were debunked by posters that showed the pictures before they were cropped by the rightwing press. Women being given ice cream as reward for dancing. The pictures published by the rightwing press in America and Israel cropped the part of the picture that showed them getting ice cream for a performance. None of the Palestinians in the background of the photos were dancing or celebrating.

The megaphones for war on Iran, as they were when they clamored for war on Iraq, are totally discredited.

[Fredda Weinberg]

9. BS. I don't watch Faux

but I was working from home that awful day and saw lots of video, including footage of Iraqis and Palestinians celebrating. If you need to explain it away - that ice cream was to blame while the rest of the world stood shocked, well then, it can't be helped.

[maalak]

10. are Reuters and CNN "right wing propoganda"?

http://www.snopes.com/rumors/cnn.htm

There is absolutely no truth to the information that is now distributed on the Internet that CNN used 10-year-old video when showing the celebrating of some Palestinians in East Jerusalem after the terror attacks in the U.S. The video was shot that day by a Reuters camera crew. CNN is a client of Reuters and like other clients, received the video and broadcast it. Reuters officials have publicly made the facts clear as well.

The allegation is false. The source of the allegation has withdrawn it and apologized. It was started by a Brazilian student who now says he immediately posted a correction once he knew the information was not true. This is the statement by his university — UNICAMP — Universidad Estatal de Campinas-Brasil.
...
Palestinian Authority actions to confiscate film footage of Palestinians celebrating the terror attacks on the US were logical to prevent the media from painting the wrong picture of Palestinian sentiment, Bassam Abu Sharif, an adviser to PA Chairman Yasser Arafat.

"This was a normal preventive act . . . we don't want to give more to the Zionist propaganda which portrays all Palestinians as terrorists," he said. "The idea is that these people were not allowed to film, because a small group of people on film would represent the Palestinian people as a whole."

[IndianaGreen]

12. CNN was a PR arm of the IDF during the Israel-Lebanon war

as was the rest of the MSM.

I was here when those pictures were posted, discussed, and debunked in DU.

[maalak]

13. as you can read from the link, it wasn't debunked... it was validated.

from sources other than CNN as well...

http://www.snopes.com/rumors/cnn.htm

[IndianaGreen]

14. I suggest you go to the old DU archives

and see for yourself. This is not some internet myth as the rightwing is trying to portray.

[maalak]

15. it wasn't just pictures...

there were ample eye witnesses and confirmation that Palestinians were cheering in the streest, celebrating the 9/11 attack.

if you really want to have an honest discussion, i'd suggest starting by not selectively ignoring things you don't like about it.

[IndianaGreen]

16. No, this was staged by Israel propagandists

One of the reports had a reporter for a rightwing newspaper hop on a car and travel to the West Bank in the hope of catching the Palestinian reaction to 9-11. They had to stage the photos!

[maalak]

17. like i said, it was NOT just photos...

and it wasn't just one source.

[oblivious]

11. Are you sure you want to make this about "911 dancing middle-easterners" ?