Sad Palestinian Loss Heard Live on Israeli TV

Sometimes it is the small incidents in the midst of mass destruction that really get to people. It may be worse if someone who you were hearing and seeing throughout that conflcit becomes the sad victim at the end, even the very last day before that conflict ends.

Such as case is Dr. Ezzeldeen Abu al-Ashi. His is Palestinian but he works in an Israeli hospital and over the course of the last three weeks he has been reporting to Israel's channel 10 about what is going on in Gaza. Yesterday Israel was present as this Doctor lost three of his four daughters live on air.

"No one can get to us," he screamed in Arabic on a live phone call with a
channel 10 anchor. "My God ... My God ..."

Dr. Ashi told the anchor his family had just been killed, and that he was
"overwhelmed."

"My God ... My girls ..." he cried. "Shiomi ... Can't anybody help us
please?"

The news anchor asked Dr. Ashi where his house is, and cameras followed as
the journalist frantically tried to employ his network of contacts to send help
to the doctor. Shortly thereafter, the Israeli Army allowed a Palestinian
ambulance to speed to his location. Only one of al-Ashi's daughters survived.

"Everybody in Israel knows that I was talking on television and on the
radio," said Dr. Ashi. "That we are home, that we are innocent people.

"Suddenly, today, when there was hope for ceasefire, on the last day I was
talking to my children ... Suddenly, they bombed us; a doctor who takes care of
Israeli patients. Is that what's done? Is that peace?"

It is out of the little things that connect to people. Individuals far more than the masses have that impact. I hope that this sad loss will burn into the hearts of those who saw it. And make some inroads to make people wake up to make this ceasefire a permanent peace.



Hat tip to Paul Walter

Lockerbie Twenty Years On: A Reflection

On the Saturday before Pan Am flight 103 blew up and the debris landed on Lockerbie and its environs I was being driven up the then A74 towards Glasgow for the night en route to Northern Ireland for the Christmas holidays. The time was approximately the same as when 4 days the name of the small Dumfrieshire town became ingrained on the consciousness of the world.

It may not of been the first time that a plane was blown up for terrorist purposes but it had the most impact because the plane and majority of its passengers were American. Sadly it is often the case with world news and disasters that we tend to ignore many of them when the line no one from our country was killed in the outcome. It doesn't take away from the horror or suffering of those affected but we often tend to focus on ourselves, or at least those like us.

It is worth looking at what is currently going on this close to Christmas. Yes to some extent we are aware of the cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe because Mugabe is somewhat of a public enemy of the year. But often disasters elsewhere outside of our western comfort zone are confined to the margins both in our medias coverage and in our own minds and hearts.

Of course the events of 21 December 1988 were startling and disturbing. Something that possible didn't get surpassed in UK and US viewers minds until the events of 9/11 but all the reflecting today has got me to thinking of all the things forgotten that have been equally if not more galling. So in 2009 I will continue to see out some of these less covered events, indeed I think I'll try to cover more of them, and try my best to find updates and keep the narrative flowing.

Second Weekend of Pre-Wedding Tradedy Hits West Lothian

The news that two West Lothian men died while attending a stag party in Blackpool came on the day David Livingstone, who was killed in car crash in Bathgate last Saturday, was due to be married.

Barry Bryce from Armadale and Scott Hunter from Blackridge got into difficulties when a wave swept them off steps on the sea wall.

My thoughts and prayers are with the families involved.