A CNN reporter found that she had bitten off a little more than she could chew while trying to cover Palestinian protests against Israel in the West Bank on Friday.
Things turned ugly when Sara Snider, who is seen donning a helmet and bulletproof vest with “press” written on it, tried to approach a group of protesters. One man broke from the crowd and rushed towards her, screaming expletives in her face.
The entire explosive scene was broadcast live on-air by CNN.
CNN sent a reporter to Gaza and I think it is fair to say it did not end well. pic.twitter.com/bfAlfSJLrO
— Ben Kew (@ben_kew) October 20, 2023
PROTESTER: You are genocide supporters. You are not welcome here, genocide supporters. F**K CNN! F**K CNN! Genocide supporters.”
After the man continued to maintain a threatening posture, Snider was then surrounded by bodyguards and/or production assistants. At that point, they all break contact and rush out of the area, with Snider offering this bit of commentary.
SNIDER: We’re fine, but what you are seeing is the heightened fear, anger, frustration with what is happening in general.
I wish it were that simple, but there’s no real reason to believe this is just about justified fear and anger. Opposition to Israeli self-defense against Palestinian terrorist groups is ideologically engrained. Antisemitism is quite literally taught in schools. It is naive to think anyone can just show up in these areas and have a normal conversation about geo-political realities.
Ironically, despite all the opposition to Israel in the West Bank, those who live there provide an example of how damaging Hamas is. The average wage in the West Bank is well over twice what it is in Gaza. The West Bank is also objectively safer for Palestinians than the non-occupied areas that Hamas controls.
That’s the kind of nuance you simply aren’t going to see argued in these situations, though. There’s a reason Muslims are burning down synagogues in Tunisia, and it’s not because they are actually fearful of Israelis. Palestinians could be given their own state tomorrow, and nothing would change in regard to those seeking the extermination of Israel throughout the Arab world.
As to this CNN reporter, she managed to escape her situation without things escalating further, but perhaps she should consider that there are actual differences between cultures. Palestinians do not want American news outlets shoving cameras in their faces, and no matter how much deference CNN tries to show their cause, it will never be enough. The West needs to wake up to that reality.
