Robert Fisk & Jeremy Bowen - On War & The Role Of Media

Two middle east correspondents discuss the role media and journalists play in covering wars and conflict.

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[CharlesDickens99]

It was the Muslims who started the wars of religion. Modern politically correct histories will tell you that Jerusalem fell to the Muslims without a fight but, in fact, the reason no major battle was fought for Jerusalem in 638 was that Byzantines had been defeated at Battle of Yarmuk in 636. Jerusalem sustained a 4 month siege before it surrendered.

[PICLex]

dude on right fail

[BelligerentPacifist]

@CharlesDickens99 Jerusalem was delivered to the Muslims by the Christians there. Although they didn't want Jews living there, but Muslims negotiated for them to be allowed to visit. The Muslims have the idea of opening up a country not capturing it. Jerusalem was being denied to the Jews.

One major problem with European Roman Empire was that it had no identity of its own because Muslims had adopted and improved upon the Greco-Roman civilization. They chose to define themselves as not-Islaam.

[CharlesDickens99]

@ImranS89 Wars of religion started AFTER the Muslims started warring. They were defensive wars. Jerusalem was captured by Muslims in 638. It was in 1095 that the Pope called for the First Crusade. Denouncing the Crusades is a bit like beginning a history of the Second World War in 1944 and stating that D-day, the invasion of Normandy, was a wicked invasion, concocted by Britain, the USA and other allies, of France which was, of course, the natural home of the Germans.

[ImranS89]

@CharlesDickens99 Wars of Religion were started well before the Muslims started warring. The Crusades were a religious war by Christian fundamentalists.

[BloggerMusicMan]

I've read his essays for quite a while now. This man is the most compelling and thought provoking reporter I've ever read.

[Poltergeist40]

By Aaaalllaaah him and Bowen are a formidable pair against the atrocities of murderous Is ray eeeli cunts !!

[s0673451]

@CharlesDickens99 you realise that that was nearly 500 years ago? you realise your other example was nearly 1500 years ago?

under that logic all english should leave england and go back to germany, where they came from in the 6th century and leave the country to the celts.

under that logic all americans must immediately leave america and leave the continent to the indians. the things fisk talks about are crimes for which the perpitrators are still alive! its not too late to remedy them!

[CharlesDickens99]

Fisk is also ignorant of examples of Ottoman aggression such as

The Breaking of the Siege of Vienna (14th, October 1529)

The Battle of Lepanto (7th of October, 1571)

The Battle of Khotyn (9th of October, 1621)

The Battle of Vienna (11th of September, 1683)

[CharlesDickens99]

In the book, Age of the Warrior, Fisk writes this factual inaccuracy. Shakespeare lived at a time when the largely Muslim Ottoman Empire then at the zenith of its power, remained an existential if not a real threat for Europeans.

This is nonsense. In 1565, one year after the birth of Shakespeare (1564), the Turkish Ottomans besieged Malta and were defeated by the Knights Hospitallers of St John.

When Queen Elizabeth I heard of this she ordered all the church bells in Britain rung.

[JohnnyRock2000]

So many speakers that tell the truth about Israel are pushed to the fringe by their contemporaries. It's refreshing to see one of the old guard, still accepted and not crushed. He should write a book about how to float to the top.