Last update - 00:00 10/03/2008
IDF operation in Gaza not an issue for German media
By Assaf Uni, Haaretz Correspondent
MUNICH - No one mentioned the Gaza Strip. The eight senior reporters of Bayerischer Rundfunk (Bavarian Broadcasting) sat Tuesday facing Israel's ambassador to Germany, Yoram Ben-Ze'ev. They asked him about the special relationship between the two countries, the conflict with Hezbollah and Iran's nuclear program.
But the latest escalation in the Gaza Strip, in which three Israelis and more than 100 Palestinians were killed, whose shocking photographs were broadcast the world over and forced the Foreign Ministry to initiate a public relations offensive, was not mentioned in the television station's conference room near Munich.
On this issue, Germany is unusual compared with the media throughout Europe, and Ben-Ze'ev understands this. The Qassam attacks against Israel and the offensive in the Gaza Strip received limited coverage here, perhaps because the events took place during the weekend, perhaps because of the severe storm that struck the region, or the Russian elections.
Or maybe, just like the current German political leadership, most of the media is careful not to be excessively critical of Israel. Only the leftist newspaper TAZ published pictures of a dead Palestinian baby on its front page under the headline: "The Bombing of Gaza." The rest moved the photos and reports to the inside pages.
"We cannot compare the media coverage in Germany to that in Britain or France," the ambassador said. "Israel's position here enjoys greater support than any other country in Europe. Of course, we need to constantly take action to sustain this situation, because it may change."
And this is the purpose of the meetings held with the three main media outlets in Munich - Bavarian Broadcasting, whose Israel-based reporter serves as the correspondent for the public network ARD, senior editors of the center-left daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung, and the editors of the conservative magazine Focus.
The ambassador, who took up his post four months ago, says he does not use the term "public relations" and talks of "cooperation." But his meetings to present Israel's position took on an air of urgency in light of the Gaza operation and the continued rocket barrage against Israel.
So what interests German television when it meets Israel's ambassador? "How concerned is Israel about the threat posed by Arab population growth?" the editors asked. "Does the UN decision to impose further sanctions on Iran satisfy Israel?" "How do you see the differences in the treatment of Israel in Germany compared with other European countries?" "What is Israel's reactions to the meeting between the German foreign minister and his Syrian counterpart?"
In the end, Ben-Ze'ev decided to raise the issue of Gaza on his own.
"We want to make clear that we have nothing to apologize for," he said. "What are we supposed to do when we are faced with the daily bombing of Sderot for years? There is no country in the world that has taken so many risks to the lives of its citizens to achieve peace as Israel has."
The ambassador says his aim is to share with people the dilemmas facing Israel. "When I sit with the editors, I want them to sense the misgivings Israelis face, the fact that there is no black and white."
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