Investigative Reports, by Hany Ghoraba (Excerpt: read on Al Jazeera Anchor's Call for Assassinating Arab Leaders goes Unpunished)
Special to IPT News
February 24, 2020
Qatari news network Al Jazeera portrays itself as podium for free speech in the Middle East. But since its 1997 founding, it has gained notoriety as an outlet willing to air views of Islamist extremists and jihadists. It often was the first to receive al-Qaida statements and videos, including those by founder Osama bin Laden.
(Twitter image) Al Jazeera anchor Jamal Rayyan.
The Qatari network promoted Islamist movements during the 2011-12 Arab Spring revolutions. It propped up Islamist agendas in the Middle East, especially those tied to the Muslim Brotherhood. The network's pro-Brotherhood bias prompted more than 20 Al Jazeera staffers to resign in 2013 in protest.
That background is relevant in understanding an Al Jazeera anchor's reaction last month to the new U.S. peace plan, dubbed the "Deal of the Century."
Ambassadors from the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Bahrain attended a news conference where President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the plan.
Al Jazeera senior anchor Jamal Rayyan asked his Twitter followers whether Arab leaders who supported the deal should be assassinated.
"After the Deal of the Century revealed the presence of Arab figures, would you approve that the Palestinian factions form highly trained special units to 'handle' the Arab countries figures who are working on thwarting the Palestinian Liberation movement in order to stop these countries? Your opinion is important."
What happened next shows that Al Jazeera's lenient policy toward terrorism incitement extends beyond the guests it books. The network has made no comment about its anchor's incendiary rhetoric.
Rayyan deleted his question about Arab leaders in the wake of backlash from social media users who accused him and Al Jazeera of inciting and endorsing assassinations and terrorism. A hashtag, "Jamal Rayan incites terrorism," trended on Twitter.
Rayyan made no other comment about his tweet. But he did post a statement thanking "all the respectable followers who cared about my health condition and their prayers for quick recovery because of a small break in my legs. Due to my busy schedule as a result of the physiotherapy I will not be able tweet till further notice. Goodbye."
But he continued tweeting next day. "Like a hawk, I will rise above the jungle struggle," he wrote. "I know if I fall even the smallest of creatures will try to crush me in a jungle where even its smallest creatures are wolves."
Read on here.
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