MRN

The aspiration of the Media Review Network is to dispel the myths and stereotypes about Islam and Muslims and to foster bridges of understanding among the diverse people of our country. The Media Review Network believes that Muslim perspectives on issues impacting on South Africans are a prerequisite to a better appreciation of Islam.

No woodshed for netanyahu

by MRN
January 1, 2013July 25, 2013

By Patrick Cockburn

(source: VOC fm Online / Counterpunch)

Meetings between US presidents and Israeli prime ministers are usually preceded by speculation that the US leader will finally demand that Israel stop expanding settlements in the West Bank, displacing Palestinians in East Jerusalem and embarrassing the US by misjudged military actions.

Before yesterday’s White House encounter there were particularly loud criticisms of Israel from the US security establishment. The influential commentator Dr Anthony Cordesman of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies said that America’s commitment to Israel’s security "does not justify or excuse actions by an Israeli government that unnecessarily makes Israel a strategic liability when it should remain an asset".

Dr Cordesman said that Israel should be more careful about the extent to which it tests the limits of US patience and exploits the support of American Jews. He warned Israel against launching an attack on Iran in the face of a US "red light". The US is particularly sensitive to the negative fallout of Israeli actions in the Middle East because America’s strength in the region has been reduced by the failure of its military intervention in Afghanistan and Iraq to achieve their objectives.

Press statement

by MRN
January 1, 2013July 25, 2013

MRN at Commemoration of Flotilla Victims in Turkey

By Dr Firoz Osman

MRN’s Dr Firoz Osman Attended the Commemoration in Istanbul – June 2010

The Media Review Network was invited to participate in the commemoration of the deaths of the 9 martyrs and 50 injured civilians on the Turkish ship, Mavi Marmara, massacred by the Israelis in international waters whilst delivering humanitarian aid to the besieged people of Gaza, Palestine.

A flotilla of six ships carrying tons of medication, food, milk powder, wheelchairs, etc. were hijacked by Israel after the attack on the ship, and the hundreds of aid workers from 32 countries were kidnapped and held hostage at the port of Ashdod. They included a holocaust survivor, an 80 year old man, a Nobel laureate and a baby.

The spirit and conviction of the families of the martyrs, the incredible support from ordinary Turkish people, and their determination to continue to help the starving Palestinians under a three year siege, was most inspiring.

Turkey, for decades a staunch ally of the Zionist regime, recalled its ambassador and is demanding an apology and compensation, or else it will break off diplomatic relations. The hosts expressed their admiration for the South African governments’ stance in withdrawing its ambassador for Israel’s despicable violation of International Law.

The MRN joined the scores of NGO’s from Europe, USA and Asia in condemning the cowardly Israeli attack on the innocent. There was a consensus to broaden the boycott, disinvestment and sanctions campaign, and to pressurize governments to isolate the Zionist regime. There was also agreement to coordinate legal efforts to prosecute the renegade Israeli regime at the ICC.

Dr. Firoz Osman
Secretary-General,
Media Review Network
Cell: 082 337 6976
E-mail: fhosman@iafrica.com

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Two state hypocrisy

by MRN
January 1, 2013July 25, 2013

By Daniel McGowan

(source: Gilad Atzmon- www.gilad.co.uk)

Historical Palestine (or Israel within the borders it now controls including pre-1967 Israel, the West Bank, Gaza, and the Golan Heights) is one country with one water system, one electrical grid, one powerful military to defend and define its external borders, one monetary system, one telephone system, and one postal system. It is already one state, although half the population has lesser rights or none at all.

The current argument for creating two states is simply another attempt to carve out a Jewish state, called Israel, where Jews have by law superior rights to non-Jews. It involves ethnic cleansing, segregation, and racism; it is definitely not a formula for lasting peace.
American support of a racist, apartheid state is contrary to what we Americans profess to believe. Yet we overwhelmingly endorse the idea of a Jewish state and ignore the basic human rights of half the population that is not “chosen.”

Cnns objectivity questioned in sacking of mideast reporter

by MRN
January 1, 2013July 25, 2013

By Eli Clifton

(source: AntiWar.com)

CNN’s firing of Octavia Nasr, the editor responsible for the network’s Middle East coverage, over a Twitter post in which she expressed her sadness over the death of a Lebanese cleric has set off a firestorm of debate about what the decision says about CNN’s fairness in reporting on the region.

On Sunday, Nasr wrote, "Sad to hear of the passing of Sayyed Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah… One of Hezbollah’s giants I respect a lot," on her Twitter account, which is followed by over 7,000 readers.

Fadlallah was an inspirational figure for Lebanese Shiites and an early supporter of Hezbollah. Fadlallah, who initially supported the use of suicide bombings as a means of resistance against the occupation of Lebanon and Palestine, later criticized Hezbollah for its close ties to Iran, as well as Ayatollah Khomeini’s velayet- e faqih "rule of the clerics." which Khomeini imposed in Iran in 1979.