The entire planet has been following with bated breath Supermodel Naomi Campbell’s 42nd birthday’s visit to the land where Jesus did stuff (except, apparently, for celebrating his 42nd birthday).
It started well, with Campbell arriving late Monday night with her billionaire boyfriend Vladislav Doronin and an entourage of 21. They drove straight to the Wailing Wall, then retired to the King David hotel.
Day two was different. The beautiful Ms. Campbell has, according to Palestinian security officials speaking to the AP, “lit candles in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem,” which is “built on the spot where Christians believe Jesus was born.”
Why, you might ask, does a supermodel require representation by PA security officials? This, as Fido might say, is where the best bones are buried.
An irate Palestinian Journalists Syndicate condemned the Palestinian Authority’s “heavy-handed treatment of reporters on Tuesday covering a supermodel’s visit to Bethlehem.”
According to Palestinian news agency Ma’an, The PA’s official Palestine TV recorded an exclusive interview with Naomi Campbell at a restaurant outside the Church of the Nativity, but other reporters “weren’t allowed as much as a photograph.”
Can you imagine how frustrating it must be for reporters who normally cover nothing but folks beating up other folks over stuff, when a striking visitor like Naomi walks into their midst – and they’re all pushed off the story? Man, that burns.
Security guards accompanying the model harassed reporters and even threatened to break their cameras if they got near, according to the syndicate, which said its members were “furious.”
No kidding. Who wouldn’t be furious when they can see from afar Campbell celebrating her birthday at the Casa Nova Palace Restaurant, over “a traditional Palestinian meal of lamb and rice,” but no scraps for the Paparazzi.
In fact, according to AP, “Campbell requested anonymity because Palestinian officials threatened to punish people speaking to reporters.”
Did she fear the PA goons would throw her in their dungeon if she dared talk to the press? Seiously?
Unlike the Palestinian reporters who couldn’t do anything except make very angry faces, AP reports that a small, shaggy black dog whom the employees called “shekel,” the name of Israel’s currency, barked at mustachioed plainclothes Palestinian security officials sitting at tables.
You go, Shekel!
Ma’an commented that the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate, which has protested a series of arrests of journalists in recent weeks, noted that the Palestinian leadership has expressed its commitment to free speech “on more than one occasion,” while they are nevertheless routinely subjected to restrictions on their work.
Very un-Jesus like…