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James North

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From left, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt, King Salman of Saudi Arabia, Melania Trump and President Trump during the opening of an anti-extremist center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Photo: Saudi Press Agency)

Critics of U.S. aid to Egypt ask why ask pointedly why the Biden administration is giving $1.3 billion to a military regime that has an estimated 60,000 political prisoners, one of the highest totals in the world. The answer is that the U.S. has been bribing Egypt for the past 4 decades to maintain peace with Israel, and this year’s military aid is just the latest payoff.

By focusing on Joe Biden’s personal relations with the murderous Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the American media is missing the much larger story. The U.S., with Israel’s encouragement, could be forming a dangerous anti-Iran military alliance along with the Saudis. Such a Washington/Tel Aviv/Riyadh agreement, masquerading as a “regional security” deal, raises the danger of war and a regional nuclear arms race in the Middle East.

Palestinians carry candles and pictures of slain Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, to condemn her killing at the Manger Square of the Church of the Nativity in the West Bank city of Bethlehem on May 16, 2022. (Photo: Ahmad Tayem/APA Images)

The State Department declares after examining the bullet that the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh was likely by an Israeli soldier but definitely not “intentional.” Really? The U.S. whitewash is brazen. It’s no surprise the State Department hoped Americans were too distracted by Fourth of July fireworks to pay attention. But why does the “New York Times” play along?

New York Times headquarters

The New York Times today was shamed into publishing an investigation into who killed the distinguished Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh — nearly 6 weeks after she died, and after other news organizations investigated and said, an Israeli soldier killed her. The Times echoes those investigations, concluding that the bullet that killed Abu Akleh “was fired from the approximate position of an Israeli military vehicle,” but it does little to expose Israel’s lies and obfuscation in the case.

A long-delayed New York Times editorial on the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh bears the insulting headline, “Who Killed Journalist Shireen Abu Akleh?” As if the Israeli government position bears considering, “Palestinian gunmen” had killed her. When in fact, reporting over the past month (although not in the Times) makes clear that the only genuine questions are: Did the Israeli soldier who killed Shireen Abu Akleh target her on purpose? If so, who ordered it? And who in the Israeli chain of command is continuing the coverup?