The New York Times Doubles Down on Pilot “Altercation”

As we all know, The New York Times claims to lead the way in journalistic integrity. However, in an outrageous move, it doubled down on its initial politically correct description of yesterday’s violence on the Israeli plane, calling it an “altercation between the pilot and co-pilot” – refusing to call it a terrorist attack.

The New York Times also bashed the “activists and partisans” who “publish speculation or unverified information” regarding the violent stabbing aboard the flight. In other words, no one should be reporting that a 9/11-style attack was averted.

Yesterday we covered the narrowly averted mass tragedy in the skies. Without the brave passengers and crew, the results could have been catastrophic. We are thankful that, miraculously, no one was killed.

And yes, at first, news coverage was cautious as it gathered the facts. But it was pretty evident from the start that one pilot had brutally stabbed another in an attempt to take down a plane carrying 174 passengers, 166 of whom were Israelis, to possibly kill thousands more.

And calling yesterday’s event an “altercation” is like describing it as a two-sided argument that went awry at a family’s dining room table. Even further, throwing shade at people who called it a terrorist attack is ridiculous.

Because not only are Israeli officials calling it a terrorist attack, but also the heroic passenger who put the Omani attacker in a chokehold called him a “terrorist.” So The New York Times is throwing shade at this brave man who saved lives.

And just moments before we went on air today, The Times of Israel published an article detailing the “Islamist radical indoctrination” that the attacker’s social media espoused. He often spoke of “killing Jews.” But again, how dare such “activists and partisans” label such violent individuals as terrorists.

Yesterday’s terrifying events are yet another reminder that countries need to be vigilant in checking out the backgrounds of pilots coming in and out of their countries. We just commemorated the 25th anniversary of 9/11 – the last time a suicidal terrorist pilot was able to accomplish their evil intent on a mass scale.

America and Israel must fully vet the pilots who are responsible for so many lives aboard an aircraft.

The ACLJ remains a staunch defender of Israel. And we do it often on the world stage at the United Nations.

For example, in its most recent report, the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel (COI) manufactured Israel as a scapegoat for the deaths of Palestinian children in Gaza.

We filed a response with the U.N. exposing the COI’s manipulation and drawing a clear line between fact and fiction that it so irresponsibly blurred.

Such as the COI’s cited instances of “deliberate targeting” include a 16-year-old boy shot and killed by Israeli soldiers, a five-year-old child injured when a grenade was thrown into a crowded house, and 170 children who tragically died in Israeli airstrikes. But there’s much more left out that tells the full story.

The COI intentionally ignored key facts: the explosive the 16-year-old boy threw at Israeli forces moments before his death, the phone calls Israel made warning the five-year-old’s family to evacuate, and the evacuation orders Israel issued to civilians before the airstrikes.

After seeing the entire picture, such examples are hardly demonstrative of Israeli forces deliberately targeting children.

The COI’s serious allegations against Israel lack any credible evidence, and the ACLJ refuses to let these baseless accusations go unanswered. We will never stop defending America’s greatest ally in the Middle East.

Today’s Sekulow broadcast included a full analysis of The New York Times doubling down on its outrageous coverage of yesterday’s terrorist attack. Special Presidential Envoy Ric Grenell also joined us to react to Iran urging Americans to vote against Trump.

Watch the full broadcast below: