An otherwise fair article on Ariel Sharon by Con Coughlin in the Daily Telegraph contains the following:
In fact, Sharon never described Palestinians as “drugged cockroaches.” Coughlin has apparently confused an often misused quote that is actually attributed to former IDF Chief of Staff and MK Rafael Eitan.
According to an investigation by CAMERA, Eitan, in an atypical comment, made it during a discussion of how best to deal with Arab violence in the West Bank. In responding to suggestions by Knesset members that the army should stop stone throwers by shooting at their feet or throwing stones back, Eitan reportedly said:
The Arabs will never win over us by throwing stones. Our response must be a nationalist Zionist response. For every stone that’s thrown–we will build ten settlements. If 100 settlements will exist–and they will–between Nablus and Jerusalem, stones will not be thrown. If this will be the situation, then the Arabs will only be able to scurry around like drugged roaches in a bottle.
In any case, the reference to “drugged cockroaches” should not be part of Coughlin’s article.
An email has been sent to both him and the Daily Telegraph requesting a correction but over 24 hours later, there’s been no response.
UPDATE: The Daily Telegraph has now removed the erroneous quote from the article.
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Image: CC BY flickr/Kodomut.
© Divuach Ne’eman R”A, 2025
