A recent editorial in the PA's official newspaper Al Hayat al-Jadida condemns parents who refuse to send their children to participate in the riots against Israeli soldiers. Referring even to those who merely criticize those who participate in the riots, editor Hafez Bargouti writes, "These destructive, abominable [individuals] harm us more than the bullets of the occupation, because they constitute a fifth column. Our nation must learn a lesson and take them to reckoning later on." The editorial, in the Oct. 27th edition of the paper, was translated by Palestinian Media Watch.

Journalist David Bedein, of Israel Resource News Agency, adds that Associated Press reported yesterday that "Palestinian Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo wrote to an Israeli human rights group that [Palestinian] children are being told 'to stay away from flash points." However, Bedein notes, Palestinian radio and television mention no such call, but rather continue to feature songs and poems praising Palestinian children who "die as martyrs." "The message that Abed Rabbo communicated to the foreign and Israeli media was simply not communicated to his own people," concludes Bedein.