Letter to Washington Post Staff

From: Dr. Michael Berenhaus [mailto:mberenhaus@comcast.net]
Sent: Tuesday, January 30, 2007 9:13 AM
To: washington post staff
Subject: Apparent bias still evident at The Washington Post

Dear Chairman, Staff, Editors, and Ombudsman,

In Palestinians Under Pressure To Leave Iraq [Jan. 25, 2007], Washington Post reporter Joshua Partlow interviews a Palestinian Arab and states that his “parents took refuge in Iraq after the creation of Israel in 1948.” Contrary to this inference, the creation of Israel did not displace any Palestinian Arabs – though that claim is the foundation and basis of the Palestinian Arab narrative. After the founding of Israel, local Palestinian Arabs and neighboring Arab countries attacked the nascent Jewish state, hoping to destroy it, and lost. If this war hadn’t occurred, there would have been no Palestinian Arab refugee problem at all– proving that the creation of Israel was not the source of the displacement -it was the Arab attack and their subsequent loss that was the cause. If the Arabs would have won the war that they started, of course there would have also been no Arab refugee problem – but back to back Holocausts for the Jewish people.

The Washington Post has adamantly denied accusations of bias against Israel. This example seems all too clear: In this article, The Washington Post distorted the basis of the Palestinian Arab/Israeli conflict and took on the Palestinian Arab perspective - which happens to be a lie. Until The Washington Post makes a stronger attempt to eliminate this apparent bias, watchdog groups will continue to crop up that take The Post to task - and rightfully so.

Michael Berenhaus