UNICEF issued a press release:NEW YORK, 31 July 2015 - “The death of an 18-month old Palestinian baby in an arson attack on his home in the West Bank is a tragedy -- and an outrage. UNICEF condemns this and all violence against the innocent. Who could be more innocent than an 18-month old baby? This demands that the guilty be brought to justice. And it demands that everyone refrain from such senseless, horrific violence.”UNICEF is one of the better UN agencies. it is not obsessed with Israel and it genuinely tried to help children worldwide.
And there is nothing wrong with condemning this incident. Israel's government and entire political spectrum condemned the horrific act.
But there is still a problem.
UNICEF never condemned the murder of Yehuda Shoham, a five month old American-Israeli murdered by a Palestinian Arab throwing a stone through that smashed through a car windshield and crushed his skull.
UNICEF never condemned the murder of Shalhevet Pass, a ten-month old girl who was murdered by a sniper who aimed at her as she was sitting in her stroller.
UNICEF never condemned the murder of Hadas Fogel, a three month old who was decapitated by depraved Palestinian Arabs who also murdered her 11-year old and 4-year old brothers and their parents.
As horrific as the incident last week was, there is no evidence that the arsonist intended to kill. But in these cases, and countless others, Israeli infants were murdered in cold blood.
I can only find one time that UNICEF condemned the murder of specific Israeli children, and that was only to provide balance for their condemnation of the murder of a Palestinian child:
The justified outrage at the killing of a Palestinian teenager in Jerusalem today, and that seen at the funerals yesterday of three young Israelis murdered in the West Bank, are a reminder that we must never become accustomed to such attacks against children, anywhere, in any way, and at any time.If the Arab teen hadn't been murdered, UNICEF would not have mentioned the three Israeli teens at all.
UNICEF's double standards, showing how their condemnations of Palestinian Arab terror are only made in context of what they consider far worse Israeli crimes, could also be seen in this press release from 2002:
Suicide bombings targeting Israeli civilians are morally repugnant and we condemn them. However, self-defense against such acts does not free Israel of its obligations under international humanitarian law or justify derogation from internationally recognised human rights. We strongly condemn the disproportionate use of force against civilian populations.The Israeli response to suicide bombings is worse than suicide bombings themselves, according to UNICEF.
You can see that UNICEF crafts their statements to avoid any charges of bias, but as we have seen many times before, bias can be proven not only by what people and organizations say but by what they don't say. In no moral universe is the death of Ali Saad Dawabsheh - as contemptible as it is - more heinous that the deliberate, depraved murders of Shalhevet Pass or the Fogel family.
The pattern here cannot be ignored. UNICEF, and organization dedicated to protecting children, considers Jewish children's lives cheaper than those of Arab children.
This shows that anti-Israel bias is pervasive even among groups that truly do important work. Being humanitarian does not inoculate you against bias.