Jerusalem bombing targeted school kids

Friday, March 25, 2011 | Ryan Jones

It appears that the bus stop bombing that killed one person and wounded another 50 on Wednsday in downtown Jerusalem may have been targeting Israeli schoolchildren on their way home from the day’s studies.

The blast occurred at around 3 PM, the time that children and teens studying at downtown schools are typically passing through the Central Bus Station and nearby bus stop terminals.

Indeed, of the 11 victims who remain hospitalized, seven are aged 18 and younger. Another is a 19-year-old seminary student. Yet another is a father of four, whose wife is only months away from giving birth to their fifth child.

The human face of those victimized by the bombing was completely missing in international reports. International news giant Reuters went so far as to question whether the bombing was an act of terrorism at all.

In its report, Reuters explained that Israeli police “said it was a ‘terrorist attack’ - Israel’s term for a Palestinian strike.”

Yes, Reuters brushed off the Jeruslem bombing by coming as close as possible to utilizing terrorist terminology, under which the attack was a legitimate “military operation.” Reuters’ wording was also a transparent attempt to draw moral equivalency between Israeli anti-terror military operations and Palestinians acts of terrorism.

Israeli observers noted that had an Israeli targeted Palestinian teens, news agencies like Reuters would be scrambling to find anyone and everyone who would label the attack a “war crime.”