Snapped Shot

Yours truly got a kind mention in an article by Ms. Melanie Phillips, an acclaimed author, syndicated columnist and blogger for the British magazine Spectator. ("Champagne for the brain," it claims.) I'm speechless, really:

But it is the photo-journalists’ website Snapped Shot which produces the really important evidence in this case about about notable discrepancies in the pictures. Key is that Shana was supposedly killed by darts from an anti-personnel weapon; yet the picture sequence shows that the car in which he had been travelling subsequently burst into flames; and it took time for the bodies to be shown on the ground in front of the burning car. Snapped Shot speculates that the evidence suggests Shana may have been killed instead by recoil from an anti-tank weapon – ie, a friendly fire killing by Hamas -- and the car was set on fire to destroy the evidence of what had really happened. Is this yet another full-blown media 'fauxtography' scandal -- with Reuters once again in the manipulated frame?

Just to clarify, I am not a photojournalist, and all of the information presented in the article she referenced was speculation, as I'm also not an expert in military technology. Fortunately for us, a number of readers who are such experts provided their insights in the commentary following the article, providing a much clearer picture of what might have actually happened.

Of course, I'm still waiting on the edge of my seat to see what the IDF reveals as a result of their internal investigation. While the questions surrounding the cause of Fadel Shana's death are pretty much answered, there are still some serious questions surrounding it—Most importantly, why did the IDF tank crew feel sufficiently threatened to fire off an anti-personnel round?

Time will tell, with any luck. Until then, I hope that Ms. Phillips and other authors of her calibre continue to research this mystery!

Others mentioned: Aussie Dave (Israellycool), The Elder of Ziyon, Richard Landes.