On November 20th, Penn Hillel had the rare opportunity to hear from and meet Philippe Karsenty. Back in 2004, Karsenty was sued for libel by the French television network, France 2, after accusing the network of having broadcast staged footage of the reported killing of a 12-year-old Palestinian boy, Muhammad al-Durrah, during a gun battle in the Gaza Strip in 2000. France 2 won its case in October 2006, but the judgment was overturned by the Paris Court of Appeal in May 2008.
A business man and founder of Media-Ratings, a media watchdog, Phillipe Karsenty spoke about the process of challenging the defects and inconsistencies in France 2's story. Always seeking the truth, he believed that it was critical to have the images interpreted correctly. Currently, the images are falsely used in Al-Qaeda recruitment materials and official government stamps within the Arab world. In addition, streets have been named for the martyred boy as a symbol of the alleged Jewish atrocities against Arabs.
Mr. Karsenty spoke for two hours to students and community members providing his account of what really occurred. Using full footage from which the edited version was taken, he demonstrated beyond a shadow of a doubt that the document, as shown by France 2, was doctored for political purposes. Karsenty encouraged students to ask questions and provided information in order to rectify the image of Israel portrayed by this event. In relation, he provided students with useful tools allowing them to join him in this battle.
Penn Hillel
215 S. 39th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
P: 215-898-7391 • F: 215-898-6393
