In yesterday’s Washington Post, Molly Moore had a long (2,100 word) article on IDF checkpoints. The main focus — decrying abuse of Palestinians (who must move through ‘lanes resembling cattle shutes’), and amplifying statements of soldiers who are frustrated with the task.
These are Moore’s two cursory references to the need for strict checkpoints in the West Bank and Gaza:
The Israeli military says the checkpoints are necessary to protect Israel and Jewish settlements in the territories from Palestinian attackers. Government and military officials have repeatedly cited the system of checkpoints in the West Bank as one of several factors contributing to a steady reduction in the number of suicide bombings against Israeli targets in the past two years.
and
39 Israeli soldiers and police officers have been killed at checkpoints and roadblocks, according to the Israeli military. A year ago, two Israeli soldiers at a checkpoint south of Jerusalem were shot dead by a Palestinian who carried an automatic rifle rolled in a prayer rug.
Sufficient context to the difficulties of the checkpoints? We would have prefered to see actual statistics on the number of terrorists caught at checkpoints, and some reference to the use of ambulances as cover for Palestinian terrorists to cross over the checkpoints.
One other omission from the article is striking: Moore concentrates on the Hawara checkpoint as a model. Hawara was the site of the one of the more shocking scenes from the past year: 14-year-old Hussam Abdu caught trying to execute a suicide bombing in March. Why would Moore choose to omit any mention of Abdu?
