While we recently noted Palestinian efforts to restrict media coverage of the intra-fadeh, efforts to cover up the in-fighting are now taking a more ominous turn. The Jerusalem Post reports that the various Palestinian groups at odds with each other are sending death threats to Arab journalists:
As a result, many of them said they have stopped covering the internecine fighting. Others said they were continuing to report on the power struggle, but without having their names mentioned for fear of reprisal.
The Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate in the Gaza Strip already warned its members not to cover anti-corruption rallies or attacks on PA offices, even threatening an unspecified punishment. The Arab news services Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiyya also received threats. So free press in the Palestinian Authority is being stifled and the intra-fadeh is overlooked or under-reported in the Arab world. Because Western news services rely heavily on Palestinian stringers, we have to wonder just how complete the overall coverage is.
The Committee to Protect Journalists spoke out against the press intimidation, but judging from past experience, the PA won’t act to ensure open press coverage, and the world media won’t deem it worthy of attention.
