Thursday, July 17, 2008

Poisoned Oranges (1978)

Palestinians Poison Israeli Exports, Children Fall Ill. 1978 Dry Bones cartoon - .
Today's Golden Oldie (featuring PLO chairman Yasser Arafat in his signature sunglasses and two day-old beard) was published on February 2, 1978. It was done in reaction to the announcement that had just been made by Palestinian "spokesmen" that they had injected exported Israel oranges in Europe with mercury. Five Dutch children fell ill, having eaten the poisoned fruit. Within days, mercury-injected oranges and lemons turned up in West Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium. The poisoning by the Palestinians was done in Rotterdam where the oranges and lemons were being repackaged for sale in European stores. No children were killed in the Palestinian "action".

It would be in the following year (1979) that Samir Kuntar (what the press would call a Palestinian "activist" or perhaps "fighter") kidnapped an Israeli and his 4-year old daughter. He dragged them to the beach where he shot and killed the father in front of the little girl so that it "would be the last thing she ever saw". He then "smashed the child's head on a rock with the butt of his rifle".

The story is retold by an Egyptian Blogger. You can read it here.

Yesterday, Samir Kuntar was released from prison as part of Olmert's insane "Prisoner Exchange" ...in return for the remains of murdered Israeli soldiers.

Kuntar is now being turned into a hero across the Arab World ...and was referred to by the Western Media as "Israel's longest-held prisoner".

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