TRAGEDY AND IRONY IN THAI PLANE CRASH

Israelis confirmed dead in Thai crash (JTA)
Eight Israelis are confirmed dead in Sunday's Thai plane crash.

The 89 dead from the disaster in Phuket include eight vacationing Israelis, Israeli and Thai officials said Tuesday.

Among the Israeli dead were two couples on their honeymoons, and two female friends in their 20s who took a vacation together before beginning their university studies. Not all of the victims' names were immediately released.

In an effort to help Thai authorities with the process of identifying victims, Israel sent to Phuket teams from the Magen David Adom ambulance service, the police forensic unit and the ZAKA burial society. Relatives of the dead also were on hand to provide DNA samples or visual verification of identity.

Two Israeli newlyweds who survived the crash with moderate injuries were to be flown home under medical supervision, Magen David Adom said.

SEE ALSO: Iran requests aid from Israeli experts to identify crash vicitms (JPost)
Iran's ambassador to Bangkok has requested the aid of Israeli forensics experts in identifying the bodies of 18 Iranian nationals missing after a fatal plane crash Sunday. The Israel Police team arrived in Phuket on Tuesday to identify the bodies of eight missing Israelis.

SECURITY FENCE HYPOCRISY FOLLOW UP

LAST WEEK I POSTED AN ARTICLE ABOUT SECURITY FENCES AROUND THE WORLD (ISRAEL ISN'T THE ONLY COUNTRY WITH A SECURITY FENCE). BACKSPIN HAS A FOLLOW UP:

Good Fences, Good Neighbors Part 2 (Backspin)
* Some 3,000 Yemeni tribesman are preparing to resist construction of a Saudi barrier. The Yemen Times explains why:

The sheik claims that Saudi Arabia has already built a security fence 4 to 7 km beyond the neutral zone inside Yemen....

Didn't the Saudis criticize the Israeli security for not sticking to the Green Line?

The Saudis are also building a 550 mile fence along the Saudi-Iraqi border.

* In six years, India has walled off 1,300 miles of the barrier's planned 2,500 mile length along the Bangladeshi border. The Times of London writes:

While the world’s attention has been focused on the Israeli security barrier sealing off the West Bank, India has been building a far longer fence to keep out Islamic militants, thwart cross-border smuggling and stop human trafficking.

At the time Israel's cabinet first approved construction plans, India's barrier was already in the building stage.

* Thailand and Malaysia agreed to triple the length of the barrier along their border.

* Pakistan is fencing off sections of its border with Afghanistan to keep out the Taliban. Sound familiar?

All these countries joined the UN General Assembly's condemnation of Israel's security fence in 2003. We're not holding our breaths waiting for critical coverage of these border projects.