Following CBS 60 Minutes’ vicious assault on Israel for its alleged mistreatment of Christians in Israel and the Palestinian territories, I can’t say I’m relishing tonight’s program, which looks at Tel Aviv and is described as:
Beneath the beauty and exuberance of Israel’s largest city lies the cold truth no resident forgets: that the city has been attacked before and could come under attack again in the increasingly volatile Middle East.
Let’s put aside the ignorance that claims Tel Aviv to be “Israel’s largest city” (Jerusalem is the largest, both in geographic size and population). Maybe I’m being overly sensitive when I see the photo that 60 Minutes has posted on its Facebook page.
With three IDF helicopters flying overhead, is 60 Minutes so very subtly trying to promote the image of Israel as a militaristic society impossible to escape from even on a Tel Aviv beach?
In fact, those helicopters flying in formation aren’t a regular occurrence at all. It happens but once a year on Independence Day when the Israeli Air Force performs an impressive flypast over the length of the Israeli coastline and major cities as a treat for those watching from below.
Here’s hoping that Bob Simon really “travels from the bars to the beaches of Tel Aviv to examine how Tel Avivians live their lives.” Will Bob redeem himself or will we be critiquing 60 Minutes for a second time in quick succession?
