CNN Caught Hiring Al-Qaeda Propagandist Bilal Abdul Kareem to Cover Syria
CNN, already facing fire for skewed coverage of President Donald Trump and Russia — skewed coverage that led to the resignation of three of its news staffers — is now embroiled in a new biased media accusation.
This one?
It involves the contracted man CNN hired to help with the network’s Syrian coverage. Turns out, this individual, named Bilal Abdul Kareem, is a propagandist for al-Qaeda.
Here’s the news, from the Political Insider:
As if things couldn’t get any worse for their image, would you believe CNN actually contracted an al-Qaeda propagandist to assist with their reporting? I can’t say I find it surprising, though what I do find surprising is that they thought they could get away with trying to cover up their tracks on this one, rather than acknowledging their mistake.
According to Salon, the news outlet hired al-Qaeda media correspondent Bilal Abdul Kareem to help CNN host Clarissa Ward as she navigated the treacherous towns and villages while filming Undercover in Syria.
In the documentary, Ward visits areas of eastern Syria currently under the control of al-Nusra, a group claiming to be the official representative of al-Qaeda in the region. According to Saudi Arabian news outlets, Abdul Kareem officially joined the terror network in 2012; years before the CNN documentary.Speaking with reporters on June 16, Kareem vented his frustrations over the production, saying he was intentionally omitted from the film’s credits over his alleged connections with al-Nusra.
“This Undercover in Syria, you can Google it. It won the prestigious Peabody Award, and it won the prestigious Overseas Press Club Award, which are basically the highest awards in journalism for international reporting,” said Kareem. “Now, [CNN] barely mentioned my name. I’m telling you, somehow CNN must have forgotten that I was the one that filmed it, I guess they forgot that.”
Abul Kareem denies any connection with the terror organization, saying on social media, “I am not, nor have I ever been, nor do I need to be a part of al-Qaeda. I don’t have any need for that.”
Syrian rebels tell a different story, saying Kareem is the man behind a series of YouTube videos promoting al-Nusra and other terror organizations operating in Syria.
