With no comment
From today’s Haaretz:
PMO announces plan to ease Gaza siege, but no such decision made
The Prime Minister’s Office announced on Thursday that the security cabinet had agreed to relax Israel’s blockade on the Gaza Strip, but as it turns out, no binding decision was ever made during the cabinet meeting.
The Prime Minister’s Office issued a press release in English following the meeting, which was also sent to foreign diplomats, was substantially different than the Hebrew announcement – according to the English text, a decision was made to ease the blockade, but in the Hebrew text there was no mention of any such decision.
If the blockade is being modified, then good. And if the blockade isn’t being modified, then the competence of Israeli diplomacy is growing by leaps and bounds, because every news outlet in the world is reporting that the blockade is being modified, so good.
So lying is good? Didn’t people complain for years that Arafat issues different press releases in Arabic and English?
Yes people complained, and nothing happened from their complaints. In contrast, Arafat, and after him, Abbas, have gained a lot by tailoring different messages to different audiences. Israeli diplomats can’t even explain the truth adequately, much less lie as effectively as the Arabs. If all this is a lie, then someone needs to get promoted.
By the way, there is another article on Haaretz now which actually refutes the article posted here. And in any case, the differences quoted in this article amount to nothing. On the one hand, the English language announcement said that a cabinet vote had been taken to allow more civilian goods in. On the other hand, the Hebrew announcement declared that more civilian goods will be allowed in, without saying if a cabinet vote had been taken.
I wish this were a case of effective diplomacy, even if lying was involved. I am sure, however, that it’s just more incompetence and lack of message control.