Except this is for real. I saved the pics with their original captions (as news agencies have been known to furtively pull embarassing photos without warning or explanations). Needless to say that the pictures themselves are no longer available, thus no links provided.
Such scenes are not uncommon in the West Bank. A mere suspicion or accusation is enough to get any man lynched – a few years back a Palestinian man suspected of collaborating with the Israeli authorities was chased around the town of Bethlehem, shot at every now and then (not to kill, just to maim) and when dead, at long last, his body was dragged about in the streets only to be hung and disemboweled in the main town square, local variation of the long-abandoned English practice of hanging, drawing and quartering (not to mention the two Israeli reserve soldiers, and here, here, here, torn to pieces by a rabid crowd inside the Ramallah police station).
Where is Mr. Annan? Where is the international community? Does suspicion of collaboration with Israel warrant such reprisals? With the elderly mother of a terrorist abusing the already mutilated body of the victim?
Palestinian gunmen, who identified themselves as members of the Islamic Jihad group, shoot a man in a public square in the West Bank town of Jenin Sunday Aug. 13, 2006. The man, who was executed in front of hundreds of people, was accused by the gunmen of giving information to Israeli authorities, helping them to kill two militants last week in a targeted attack, said witnesses and Islamic Jihad members. The victim was identified as Bassem Malah, 22, who worked in the Israeli Arab town of Umm al Fahm. (AP Photo/Mohammed Ballas)
Palestinian gunmen, who identified themselves as members of the Islamic Jihad group, hold their weapons after shooting and killing a man, lying dead on the ground, in a public square in the West Bank town of Jenin Sunday Aug. 13, 2006. The man, who was executed in front of hundreds of people, was accused by the gunmen of giving information to Israeli authorities, helping them to kill two militants last week in a targeted attack, said witnesses and Islamic Jihad members. The victim was identified as Bassem Malah, 22, who worked in the Israeli Arab town of Umm al Fahm. (AP Photo/Mohammed Ballas)
As others take pictures with their mobile phones, a man kicks the lifeless body of an alleged 'collaborator' after he was shot and killed by Palestinian gunmen, who identified themselves as members of the Islamic Jihad group, in a public square in the West Bank town of Jenin Sunday Aug. 13, 2006. The man, who was executed in front of hundreds of people, was accused by the gunmen of giving information to Israeli authorities, helping them to kill two militants last week in a targeted attack, said witnesses and Islamic Jihad members. The victim was identified as Bassem Malah, 22, who worked in the Israeli Arab town of Umm al Fahm. (AP Photo/Mohammed Ballas) 
ATTENTION EDITORS VISUALS OF DEATH AND INJURY An armed Palestinian militant and a crowd stand near the body of a man killed in the West Bank town of Jenin August 13, 2006. The man was shot by Palestinian militants because they say he collaborated with Israeli forces. REUTERS/Stringer (WEST BANK)
Palestinians, some taking pictures with their mobile phones, gather around the body of an alleged "collaborator" after gunmen, who identified themselves as members of the Islamic Jihad group, shot him and killed him in a public square in the West Bank town of Jenin Sunday Aug. 13, 2006. The man, who was executed in front of hundreds of people, was accused by the gunmen of giving information to Israeli authorities, helping them to kill two militants last week in a targeted attack, said witnesses and Islamic Jihad members. The victim was identified as Bassem Malah, 22, who worked in the Israeli Arab town of Umm al Fahm. (AP Photo/Mohammed Ballas)
A woman, mother of a militant killed by the Israeli army in 2002, steps on the body of an alleged 'collaborator' after Palestinian gunmen, who identified themselves as members of the Islamic Jihad group, shot him and killed him in a public square in the West Bank town of Jenin Sunday Aug. 13, 2006. The man, who was executed in front of hundreds of people, was accused by the gunmen of giving information to Israeli authorities, helping them to kill two militants last week in a targeted attack, said witnesses and Islamic Jihad members. The victim was identified as Bassem Malah, 22, who worked in the Israeli Arab town of Umm al Fahm. (AP Photo/ Mohammed Ballas)
ATTENTION EDITORS VISUALS OF DEATH AND INJURY An armed Palestinian militant and onlookers stand near the body of a man killed in the West Bank town of Jenin August 13, 2006. The man was shot by Palestinian militants because they say he collaborated with Israeli forces. REUTERS/Stringer (WEST BANK)
CAPTION CLARIFICATION - THE ARMED MILITANTS ARE AMONG A CROWD OF BYSTANDERS. ATTENTION EDITORS VISUALS OF DEATH AND INJURY. An armed Palestinian militant stands over the body of a man killed in the West Bank town of Jenin as a crowd watches August 13, 2006. The man was shot by Palestinian militants because they say he collaborated with Israeli forces. REUTERS/Stringer (PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES)All massacres (and here) reported in Jenin, are actually massacres of IDF soldiers who take every precaution not to hurt women and children used as human shields by the terrorists. Yet it is Israel who stands accused of war crimes. Eventually, truth will out.
This town is supposed to be under Israeli occupation - then how come there are so many armed men in broad daylight? The Palestinians are complaining of poverty and unemployment - then how come they have state of the art cell phones that can take digital pictures? Everybody (except the brutalized victim) seems to be in pretty good shape - well fed, good general condition, nice hair cuts - where's the distress, the poverty and the despair?
Also, please notice that young boys are allowed to watch. These people want an independent state - what kind of democracy will they embrace? What kind of justice? What values and principles? What kind of education will they provide for their children?
