The New York Times, in its Jan. 13 edition, carries a front-page article by Dan Bilefsky with a lead paragraph that reads as follows:

“PARIS-French Jews, already feeling under siege by anti-Semitism, say the trauma of the terrorist attacks last week has left them scared, angry, unsure of their future in France and increasingly willing to consider CONFLICT-TORN Israel as a safer refuge.”

I’ve deliberately put “conflict-torn”in capital letters to call attention to the fact that Israel, like other vibrant democracies, has its share of divided opinions, but that doesn’t make it a society that is “conflict torn.” Far from it.  Polls consistently show that Israeli Jews and Israeli Arabs are generally satisfied with their lot, and view their future in positive, optimistic terms.

So why and how did this totally unsubstantiated depiction of Israel suddenly pop up?

I leave it to editors of the Times to find out how this gratuitous slur disgraced their front page.

Leo Rennert is a former White House correspondent and Washington bureau chief of McClatchy Newspapers