Baltimore Sun Editorial Almost Hits Bull’s-Eye
The Baltimore Sun has published a solid, informative editorial on the Middle East, “Meddlesome Iran,” (June 26). The commentary is noteworthy not only on its own, but because — as CAMERA has pointed out repeatedly during the past four years — Sun editorials on Arab-Israeli matters, in particular, have been not only frequent but also frequently superficial, self-contradictory, and erroneous.
“Meddlesome Iran” hits the target three times. It:
* Correctly highlights the recent report of Gen. George W. Casey Jr., America’s top military commander in Iraq, which stresses “Iran’s duplicitous dealings” including apparently stepped-up support for anti-U.S., anti-Iraqi government terrorists;
* Properly casts doubt on Iran’s nuclear research programs, which the mullahs claim is for domestic energy production but which, for some reason, they hid from international inspectors for 18 years while periodically declaring that Israel should be wiped off the map and that one nuclear bomb might be enough;
* Refers directly to Iran’s support of various terrorist groups. The observation is not clouded by referring to Hezbollah in Lebanon as a “militia,” or its members as “militants.”
Although “Meddlesome Iran” is far above many other Sun editorials on the region, in hitting the target it still missed the bull’s-eye. That’s because while it named Hezbollah as an Iranian-supported terrorist group, it never mentions Palestinian Islamic Jihad or Hamas, the groups responsible for suicide bombings and other terrorist attacks that have murdered hundreds of Israelis and wounded thousands more. Palestinian Islamic Jihad has been identified as a recipient of Iranian financial and other support for some time. More recently Hamas too reportedly has been getting cash and other aid from Tehran.
Perhaps when the target of Iranian “meddling” is Israel, not Iraq, The Sun loses focus. Seeing the Arab conflict with Israel primarily through the filter of Palestinian victimhood — without understanding that it’s largely self-imposed — may explain focus problems. In any case, “Meddlesome Iran” is a welcomed change, and should be recognized as such. It wouldn’t hurt to drop a line to Dianne Donovan, [email protected], editorial page editor, and Paul Moore, [email protected], reader’s editor.
— Joshua Fishman, CAMERA Washington research intern; Eric Rozenman, Washington Director
More from SNAPSHOTS
Double Standards: Boycotts and Discrimination in MassLive
May 16, 2025
Anti-Israel activists, including Harvard University’s Lara Jirmanus, a clinical instructor, seem to struggle with the concept of “discrimination.” Quoted in a May 14 MassLive article, “Harvard ‘failed to respond’ to 450 discrimination complaints. Staff hand-delivered [...]
Swarthmore Students Are Learning: It Was Never About Palestinian Rights
May 14, 2025
Students at Swarthmore College are so close to understanding the conflict. An article in the Swarthmore Phoenix details the frustrations of student activists with the college’s Students for Justice in Palestine. The gist of their criticism is [...]
AFP Arabic Stops Mislabeling Northern Israeli Communities ‘Settlements”
August 10, 2021
A view of Metulla, northern Israel (Photo by Hadar Sela)After failing to set the record straight last May when Agence France Presse's Arabic service repeatedly referred to Jewish communities in northern Israel as "settlements," the [...]
NY Times Praises Ilhan Omar’s Book While Glossing Over Her Antisemitism
August 19, 2020
A recent New York Times book review boosts Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) autobiography while glossing over her antisemitism. In the paper’s Aug. 16, 2020 edition, NYT reporter Christina Cauterucci writes: The memoir offers breathing room [...]
When TV Interviews of Ilhan Omar Constitute Journalistic Malpractice
August 11, 2020
Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) documented animosity toward Jews and Israel was ignored in recent interviews by MSNBC and C-SPAN. MSNBC’s The Beat for July 23, 2020 included host Ari Melber’s 10-minute conversation at 6:16 [...]
Boston TV Station WCVB Teamed Up With Terrorist Supporter CAIR
July 7, 2020
WCVB-TV (channel 5) (Boston’s ABC network affiliate) recently misled area viewers about a matter involving antisemitic propaganda. This occurred on its local Sunday show Cityline hosted by Karen Holmes Ward who is described by the [...]
Harper’s Magazine Echoed Palestinian Propaganda Condemning Israel And America
June 2, 2020
Writing in Harper's, Kevin Baker condemns the U.S. Middle East peace plan [“The Striking Gesture,” Easy Chair, May 2020], mischaracterizing it as, “Give up all your [Palestinian] hopes and your holiest places, embark on a [...]