The Madrid bombings have becme a political 'whodunnit?' Immediately the finger was pointed at ETA, until it ws pointed out that it was a big departure from their previous terrorist acts. Then a car with explosives and Koranic versus was found, so it was Arab terrorists who were blamed. London newspaper Al-Quds Al-Arabi (www.alquds.co.uk/) receives a letter from the Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades claiming responsibility, which strengthens the case, until it is revealed that the group has a history of false claims. Then it is revealed that ETA members were arrested in the days prior to the attacks at train stations with explosives - so again it is ETA in the spotlight. It is at this point that we find The Age - reporting on government officials saying that "everything appears to indicate" ETA. By now, the death toll has risen to 198 with 1,400 people injured.
The Mail & Guardian (South Africa) has a fantastic article on the balme-game happening in Spain at the moment. The bad news - M&G want money for premium content. The good news - ZWNews.com picked up the article for publication, and they don't want money - so here's the article for free.
The only outlet that I could find that carried the claim of responsibility was Al-Jazeera - their translation of the letter received by the London paper Al-Quds Al-Arabi identifies Spain as one of the "pillars of the crusader alliance". Nonetheless, Spanish interior and foreign ministers have gone on the record as saying they believe the attacks were perpetrated by ETA as reported by The Age.
It is difficult to pinpoint the exact reason for the Western media not revealing the whole contents of the letter from the Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades. Whilst there are legitimate concerns about the letter containing codes for other cells, Al-Jazeera simply omitted those details but was still ablew to tell us it was there. If it were to stop panic, well, it is rather minor compared to what the Spaish people have just experienced. And if they just did not want to give the Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades any publicity or acknowledgement, it seems pointless - something as controverial as this will always find an outlet. However, Al-Jazeera makes no refernce to its translation being edited, but FOX news has said that the letter was five pages long. In FOX's article, they quotes exerpts from the letter that focus on aggressive and violent passages towards the Western world but omit any mention of their reasons for attacking, except that Spain is a "pillar of the crusade." But not a full translation of the state as Al-Jazeera purports to.
Around the world this is the biggest news story - for the Western world, further terrorist stikes add the climate of fear and unease. For the rest of the world, it is a sign of the longevity of this campaign from both sides and an omen as to how the future may continue to be. Getting a grasp of this ca be hard, but The Independent (UK) had excellent coverage.
The Mail & Guardian (South Africa) has a fantastic article on the balme-game happening in Spain at the moment. The bad news - M&G want money for premium content. The good news - ZWNews.com picked up the article for publication, and they don't want money - so here's the article for free.
The only outlet that I could find that carried the claim of responsibility was Al-Jazeera - their translation of the letter received by the London paper Al-Quds Al-Arabi identifies Spain as one of the "pillars of the crusader alliance". Nonetheless, Spanish interior and foreign ministers have gone on the record as saying they believe the attacks were perpetrated by ETA as reported by The Age.
It is difficult to pinpoint the exact reason for the Western media not revealing the whole contents of the letter from the Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades. Whilst there are legitimate concerns about the letter containing codes for other cells, Al-Jazeera simply omitted those details but was still ablew to tell us it was there. If it were to stop panic, well, it is rather minor compared to what the Spaish people have just experienced. And if they just did not want to give the Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades any publicity or acknowledgement, it seems pointless - something as controverial as this will always find an outlet. However, Al-Jazeera makes no refernce to its translation being edited, but FOX news has said that the letter was five pages long. In FOX's article, they quotes exerpts from the letter that focus on aggressive and violent passages towards the Western world but omit any mention of their reasons for attacking, except that Spain is a "pillar of the crusade." But not a full translation of the state as Al-Jazeera purports to.
Around the world this is the biggest news story - for the Western world, further terrorist stikes add the climate of fear and unease. For the rest of the world, it is a sign of the longevity of this campaign from both sides and an omen as to how the future may continue to be. Getting a grasp of this ca be hard, but The Independent (UK) had excellent coverage.
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