IDF Censor Tells NY Times [!] It Must Censor Future Reports on Killing of Lt. Hadar Goldin
Richard Silverstein ■ Yesterday, I reported that Hamas fighters had captured 2nd Lt. Hadar Goldin in a Gaza ambush. I also reported that Hamas said it had lost contact with the team that captured Goldin and that the team and Goldin were presumed dead. My Israeli source revealed that the IDF survivors of the ambush had shot both Goldin and the Palestinian who tried to drag his wounded body away. The Hannibal Directive had been invoked, meaning the army used every means at its disposal, including murder, to prevent the taking of its soldiers. Today, Walla confirmed via the IDF that Goldin is dead. At first the army only admitted it knew this based on “DNA evidence.” But I believed it had his body. This was confirmed by this subsequent Ynet report that it did have his body and that his funeral would be tomorrow. It is critical that there be an autopsy to determine the cause of his death. But I don’t believe the IDF will allow it because it knows what it will find. In the hours following his capture, the IDF bombarded Rafah with heavy artillery and from the air in order to both take vengeance for the ambush which killed two senior officers; and to kill Goldin. Over 60 Gazans died. Though the IDF conceded Godin is dead. But it did not concede that it killed him and did so deliberately. That is why the army censor warned the Times about its reporting.
Jonathan Cook ■ Israeli Deceptions Revealed in Story of ‘Kidnapped’ Soldier || A single incident at the weekend – the reported capture by Hamas on Friday of an Israeli soldier through a tunnel – illustrated in stark fashion the layers of deception Israel has successfully cast over its attack on Gaza. On Sunday, as the army indicated it would start limited withdrawals, Israel claimed Hadar Goldin was dead, possibly buried in a collapsed tunnel as Israel bombarded the area in which he was seized. His family said he was being left behind. Israeli officials or media did not view Hamas’ operation dispassionately. Goldin was not “captured” but “kidnapped” – as though he was an innocent seized by opportunistic criminals. As occurs so often, many western journalists followed Israel’s lead.