The settler has been obviously arrested and will be held accountable in a court of justice, you can blame nobody by an individuals behaviour representing himself.
In Israel there is a working democracy which you can't say from many countries (if any at all) in the Middle East.

"Man bites dog" is indeed news. But leaving out pertinent context and perspective is unquestionably bias

Has anyone besides me noticed any difference between the way the terrible recent shooting of Israeli Arabs on a bus is being portrayed in the press and the way similar situations are portrayed when the terrorists are Palestinians?

In the stories coming out about this shooting, it is noted that this is the third attack by individual Jews against Arab civilians since 1990. The third. I guess that's why it's such big news. By comparison, the Palestinians shoot, stab, blow up and otherwise kill Jewish civilians so regularly that no reporter even tries to enumerate the attacks any more. The story on this shooting is replete with descriptions of the bus' shattered glass, of blood on the seats, of sad images of the victims' memorials.

There was a terrorist murder/suicide in Natanya a couple weeks ago that killed four Israelis and wounded many others. Did you hear about it? Read anything about the victims, their families, the bloody scene? The community's response? Their funerals? Didn't think so.

The Aug. 5 Associated Press story about the shooting described how "an enraged mob beat (the gunman) Natan-Zada, to death and prevented police from removing his body from the bus for hours." It's a natural response by angry bystanders, I guess, yet had the roles been reversed, righteously indignant mobs worldwide would have flooded the streets in protest.

Also in stark contrast is the reaction of Israelis to the atrocity committed by the 19-year-old AWOL private who killed four and wounded more than 20.

For instance, the report says, "Natan-Zada's body was being held at a morgue after the military, his hometown of Rishon LeTzion and the extremist settlement where he recently moved refused to bury him," because what he did was repulsive, reprehensible and unjustifiable by Jewish law. The story notes that Israel's Prime Minister Ariel Sharon issued a statement condemning the attack as "a despicable act by a bloodthirsty terrorist."

Compare this to the typical Palestinian response to terrorist killers, who are routinely lauded as heroes, their images immortalized in posters and videos. Candy is distributed in their honor. There is dancing in the streets. In fact, this story notes that "dozens of women in the march chanted mournfully, 'Some day we hope to die this way as martyrs, as martyrs.'"

The gunman, the story says, was living in a settlement dominated by followers of the late U.S.-born Rabbi Meir Kahane, who was widely perceived as a fascist nut for "advocating expelling Arabs from Israel and the West Bank" — in other words, for suggesting for Arabs living in Israel, pretty much what everyone seems to think is perfectly natural for any Jews living in the Palestinian-controlled territories.

The story notes that Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas called on Israel to prevent Jewish settlers from carrying weapons, "because they are dangerous to the security and peace between the two people." Hilarious.

The story also notes that "Israeli Arabs make up about 20 percent of Israel's population of 6.9 million. Though they are full citizens, they have suffered from discrimination by Jewish-dominated governments."

Let's examine that. The Israeli Arabs are full citizens of Israel. They vote. They serve in the parliament. They are doctors and patients in Israeli hospitals. They're students in Israeli universities. Anyone know how many Jewish doctors or patients there are in Palestinian hospitals, or Jewish students in Palestinian schools, or Jewish members of the Palestinian Authority? Not only is such a suggestion laughable, as noted previously, most of the world believes any Palestinian area must be "Jew free."

Many Israeli Arabs who recall the times before Israel was declared a state — when the region was ruled by mandate by Britain or before that, by the Turks — who would suggest that their lot under the Jews has been Eden-like by comparison.

So to suggest, as this AP writer opines in her story, that "they have suffered from discrimination by Jewish-dominated governments," is disingenuous and even worse when one considers the fact that Israeli Jews can't even safely venture into Palestinian areas. That the bus passengers didn't immediately panic when an Israeli military deserter in uniform entered the bus, says the Jews don't normally pose a threat.

The opposite cannot be said.

Firstly, if the settler has been arrested, then he is being held and tried by Israeli security. I anticipate a fully unfair trial, but we shall wait and see. As somebody who spoke to Israels Diplomatic Advisor to the Knesset Speaker and its members, Yaakov Levy, only 8 days ago, I make a certain decision in saying that Israel is democratic only in name. I question who this 'democracy' represents. If we look at the Israeli Arab population, which is 20% of the total Israeli population, their representation is voted against by block tactics. If this is what we believe a democracy is, then we have accepted that democracy does not work, in which case, why are we touting a democracy? May i also ask, what democracy offers its Arab citizens 50% less in education spending than its Jewish citizens?
Secondly, you say this is only the third case of settle violence against Palestinians. I question your sources, this fact is untrue. If you look at the violence that goes unreported by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the city of Hebron alone, you will realise that it is perpetual and daily. If you challenge me on this, i invite you to visit Hebron and witness it for yourself.
If we are to compare violence, which is always a poor and juvenile decision, we only have to look at the battle of Jenin to realise the unjust killing of Palestinians.

I feel that i do not need to go beyond this, i also believe that unconstructive challenging of facts is pointless and I ask you to stop posting on Indymedia.
If you would like to read about my recent trip to Israel and Palestine, please visit:

 http://www.waronwant.org/?lid=10440

"Rachel", Israel routinely lets murderous IDF soldiers off with a slap on the wrist. Sure, they get the PR for arrests and investigations, but more often than not, the guilty party isn't punished.

The murder of four Palestinian workers last night was a mere speedbump centred in the Israeli PR about Gaza. While you're talking out your ass about double-standards, you might include the treatment by the media of the two groups.

Please, we must look a the root cause of the Freedom Fighter's problems. Was it oppression and the stress of daily war that led the poor freedom fighter to an act of desperation? What else could he do? He didn't have F-16s or Apache helicopters, he had to commit an act of freedom fighting...
Woops, scrratch all that, I thouhght the Mosnterous Murderer was a Moslem....never mind