Serious journalists covering the violence at Temple Mount/Al-Aqsa on April 15th – that is, journalists who sees their role as objectively reporting the “Who, What, When Where, and Why” – could only come to one conclusion: The violence began when Palestinian extremists – incited by Hamas, who falsely cited “Zionist threats to invade the Al-Aqsa Mosque” – began, before dawn, preparing for, and then engaging in, rioting.
Palestinians later barricaded themselves inside the mosque and hurled stones and fireworks toward officers.
Israeli police responded to the rioting only after the conclusion of morning prayers at the mosque. This, we have demonsrated, can easily be corroborated by contemporaneous reports and videos circulated on the morning in question.
After police arrested rioters and restored peace to the area, the site was re-opened, enabling more than 50,000 Muslim worshipers to return to the mosque for Ramadan prayers
We highlighted the word “responded” (in “police responded”) above because some media outlets which covered the incident blurred the sequence of events, or even implicitly suggested that the police instigated the violence. This includes Channel 4 News, which aired the following report by presenter Keme Nzerem:
There’s so much misinformation and deception. But, to highlight one especially egregious part, note that, at 50 seconds into the video, viewers are told the following about how the violence occurred:
“Shortly after dawn and, potentially in breach of international law, Israeli police had entered and then fought with worshipers inside [the mosque]. Israel says they entered to remove stones and rocks they’ve been told had been stockpiled by youths to throw at security forces”.
First, police didn’t fight with “worshipers”. They fought with violent rioters.
And, Israel didn’t just “say” they entered the mosque to remove stones and rocks stockpiled by youths to throw at security forces. There are videos proving that Palestinians were stockpiling rocks before dawn, and other videos showing them hurling these rocks, along with fireworks and both police and Jews praying at the nearby Western Wall.
Thread:
Palestinians have been calling for riots on the Temple Mount today, where they throw rocks and other objects at Police at Jewish worshipers below at the Western Wall.
Here they are breaking up bigger rocks as they prepare to riot (1/) pic.twitter.com/TJHiDqqndv
— Ari Ingel (@OGAride) April 15, 2022
Here are Palestinian youths throwing rocks, and launching fireworks at the police, w/ the police also responding with stun grenades to try and break up the violent rioting: pic.twitter.com/EyU38hOc8K
— Ari Ingel (@OGAride) April 15, 2022
Here’s another good thread by a journalist on the scene at the time, which includes a photo showing that the rioters included Hamas supporters.
Palestinians inside al-Aqsa mosque hold a banner in support of Hamas and wear the group's flag. pic.twitter.com/NKR9AJrMxu
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) April 15, 2022
The message likely conveyed to those who watched the Channel 4 News report, that Israeli police entered the mosque to attack peaceful Muslim worshipers, is not only a complete fabrication, but feeds the more toxic lie, one that’s been used by extremists for over 100 years: that the Jews are plotting to invade or even destroy al-Aqsa Mosque, and that it must be ‘defended’.
Instead of exposing this lie for what it is, media outlets like Channel 4 News amplified the dangerous propaganda about al-Aqsa consistently peddled by both Hamas and the PA – framing an antisemitic conspiracy theory as a legitimate grievance.
It just never stops, does it?
And it is important to note that rocks, stones, broken up and launched by a truly enraged and determined mob, are extremely dangerous weapons, by no means some kind of merely very annoying weapons, but essentially not likely to do lasting harm, no! They can kill people, can inflict lasting, serious injuries, and that is the intention.
I keep hoping some of the media outlets covering the Israeli/Palestinian problems will just cease and desist from the most egregious abuses of their privilege, as alleged “journalists,” to provide fair, accurate, reliable, context-sensitive news, but it seems that’s routinely not the case. After all, they have the option to leave the immediate scene of violent clashes, study the relevant history, interview credible spokespeople and scholars based in the area, or who happen to live elsewhere, and produce something they can be justifiably proud of, instead of this inane propaganda.
Palestinians over some years have carefully built up this myth that Israelis want to take over the Al Aqsa and harrass the worshippers inside – when the opposite is the case. Israelis only want peace and status quo – and the last things they want are more fighting and deaths on either side – but this truth does not suit Hamas’s narrative – and hence the various provacations to cause trouble and retaliation.