Phalangist Antoine Ghanim Killed in Lebanon

It always surprises me how little context the mainstream media give to various events in the Middle East. The BBC reported Ghanim's death thus:

Banks, schools and government offices are closed in Lebanon, as the country mourns an anti-Syrian MP who was killed in a car bombing in the capital Beirut.

Antoine Ghanim, of the Maronite Phalange party, died with at least six others in the blast in the mainly Christian Sin al-Fil district.

World leaders have condemned the assassination, while several Lebanese politicians blamed Syria for the bomb.

Lebanon is poised to choose a successor to pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud.

But the country has been mired in an ongoing political crisis, with a deadlock between pro- and anti-Syrian factions in parliament.

The reporting paints a very positive view on Ghanim within the context of Lebanon's bid to free itself from the clutches of Syria (a member of the infamous 'axis', don't forget). However, as with Pierre Gemayel's murder last year, little is reported of the party to which they belonged. The Kataeb Party was established in 1936 by Pierre Gemayel (the grandfather of his namesake). The party was founded after Gemayel had been impressed by the organisation and efficiency of the Nazi party after visiting the 1936 Olympics. On returning to Lebanon, Gemayel formed his party and named it after Franco's Falange party in Spain and organised it along similar lines. In short, the Kataeb Party is a fascist party.

Now, although any murder must be condemned as a criminal act, it makes you wonder: why do the mainstream media not give more background information about the Kataeb Party? Is it simply because they support the West's policy towards Syria? Is fascism seen as a necessary evil in the fight against another threat? Unless the media starts reporting within its proper context, these questions will remain unanswered.