Israel Matzav

State Department ignores Palestinian terror

This wouldn't be so surprising except that it is so blatant.

Writing in today's JPost, Michael Freund reports that nearly five years after 9/11, a US State Department web site that is designed "to bring international terrorists to justice" does not identify the perpetrators of suicide bombings and other terror attacks in Israel as 'Palestinians.'

The web site offers rewards "for information that prevents, frustrates or favorably resolves acts of international terrorism against US persons or property worldwide."

Freund notes:

While the site includes names, photographs and background information about terrorists wanted for attacks in places such as the Philippines, Yemen and Italy, it does not provide a single name, biographical detail or even organizational affiliation for Palestinian terrorists involved in the murder of Americans.

For example, compare this page (Phillipines) with this page (Israel, including Judea, Samaria and Gaza).

Freund cites at length an email from State Department spokeswoman Andrea Rogers-Harper in which he asks her why the perpetrators are not identified as Palestinians, even though Palestinian organizations often claim responsibility for attacks, why people behind other terror attacks are identified on the site by ethnic origin and organizational affiliation, and why no individual Palestinian terror suspects are listed on the site. It is this last question to which the response is most curious:

"To date, no reward offer has been issued with respect to specific individuals that may be wanted in connection with the incidents listed on the Violence in Opposition to the Middle East Peace Negotiations Web page."

"In order for a specific individual to be listed on the site with a reward offer," she said, "the program must receive a written request from an agency within the US government, usually an investigative agency with jurisdiction over the incident."

"The request is then put through a thorough interagency review process before it is submitted for final approval within the Department of State," Rogers-Harper said.

Thus far, she said, no such rewards have been offered for information leading to the capture of specific Palestinian terrorists wanted in connection with the murder of Americans.

At least the State Department doesn't discriminate: they don't even name individual terrorists who murdered State's own employees in Gaza. Fortunately, Israel took care of business for them.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 8:03 AM