From Alan: "Do you remember that article you commented on which Anne Bernard had written for the New York Times regarding the Syrian rebel attack on the town of Ma’loula where she reproduced in full the propaganda claims of the Free Syrian Army minimising what happened and where she went so far as to provide a live link in the article to a video she described thus: “Some of the rebels, apparently aware of their public relations problem, said in interviews that they meant Christians no harm. They filmed themselves talking politely with nuns, instructing fighters not to harm civilians or churches and touring a monastery that appeared mostly intact.” Well As’ad we now know how the rebels gained admittance to the monetary to talk “politely” with the nuns and go “touring” the building. In an interview on Boston’s NPR radio Archbishop Philip Saliba (Orthodox Primate of North America) said that “the rebels knocked on the door of the convent, and the nuns said who is it, and he wouldn't answer. He told them to open the door otherwise I will put a bomb underneath the door and walk in. So they opened the door.”
In view of this development I wonder if Anne Bernard and the New York Times would consider amending that article thus “the rebels realising they had a PR problem and not wanting to trouble the nuns, out of consideration, even offered to blow the convent door off its hinges to save the nuns the bother of having to open it” I am sorry to be funny but it is beyond belief what passes as journalism in the NYT and it is an absolute disgrace that that video of those nuns filmed under duress was ever used in that way by Anne Berhard and the paper, disgusting really."
