The AP bias strikes again

Rockets into Israel from Gaza? No big deal. On a daily basis? So what. Israel sends a Hellfire up the asses of three terrorists trying to send rockets into Israel from Gaza? Oh. My. God. Stop the presses, it’s a war crime!

Israeli Army Kills Palestinian Militant
An Israeli helicopter launched an airstrike along the Gaza Strip’s border with Israel early Saturday, officials said, killing a Palestinian militant and wounding two others and further straining a fragile cease-fire.

Funny how daily and near-daily rocket attacks by the Palestinians don’t so much as merit an article, and yet, the attempt by Israel to stop the rocketing of their cities and people—now THAT’s news. And of course, we must make the Israelis look as bloodthirsty as possible.

In the West Bank, meanwhile, Israeli troops clashed with Palestinian gunmen, wounding one of the area’s most wanted and best-known militants. Zakariye Zubeydi, a leader of the Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, was moderately wounded in the shoulder, the group said.

The reason that the IDF was after him is because two days ago, he declared that he would continue trying to launch terror attacks. But only the Israeli press picked that up. And damn! They almost got him.

The army said it carried out Saturday’s airstrike, near the Jebaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza, after spotting the militants trying to plant a bomb. It said militants had planted explosives in the same area two days earlier.

The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a small militant group, said the militants were “on a holy mission” when they were hit by the Israeli force.

There’s your background for the strike. Now let’s see what the AP deems worth burying in the part of the story that your local paper’s World News section won’t pick up:

The incident was the latest blow to the truce, reached last November between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza.

Israel says militants have been exploiting the lull to smuggle explosives, missiles and other weapons into Gaza through tunnels from neighboring Egypt. During the truce, militants also have continued to fire rockets into Israel.

On Wednesday, a Palestinian gunman was killed in an exchange of fire with Israeli troops in an area where militants frequently fire rockets toward Israel.

The army said militants have planted more than 40 bombs along the border since the cease-fire declaration.

This is the typical wire service style. Bury the reasons why the IDF killed the terrorists, pretend that only Israel is “breaking” the truce, ignore the fact that hundreds of Palestinian kassam rockets have fallen on Israel since the “truce,” and then blame Israel for “straining a fragile cease-fire.”

It isn’t Israel that’s doing the straining.

Here’s the Reuters version, which is amazingly accurate:

Israeli helicopters fired into the Gaza Strip on Saturday, killing one Palestinian militant, in what local residents said was the fiercest exchange between Israeli forces and militants since a November truce.

The escalation in Israeli military activity came after Defence Minister Amir Peretz authorized limited strikes just inside Gaza to try to prevent militants from planting explosives, digging tunnels and firing makeshift rockets at Israeli towns near the border.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called on members of his presidential guard and national security forces to step up efforts to prevent the rocket fire “in order that our people can lead a safe life.”

By the way, there will be no action taken to stop the rocket fire other than that call for stopping it. It makes it look like Abbas is trying to do something, so that the rest of the world can say, “See? Abbas wants peace!” even though he will do absolutely nothing to stop the terror. Mostly because he approves of it.

Reuters has a new way of quoting terrorists, though. They’re taking on the terrorists’ terminology. Like this:

Islamic Jihad said its militants and members of another group had been mounting an operation near the fence when the exchange of fire occurred.

“Mounting an operation” is terror-speak for the firing of rockets, the sending of suicide bombers, and the planting of explosives. It’s so good to know that Reuters won’t call them terrorists, but it will use their lingo to describe their terror tactics.

Militants said they fired rocket-propelled grenades and automatic weapons at the Israeli forces, and detonated bombs they had planted previously near the border fence.

You see? These are the “operations” that Reuters is using terror-speak to describe.

Just another day in the mainstream media. Nothing to see here, no bias. Just keep walking.