Surely this is foreign interference in British elections?
Jeremy Corbyn has had a long history of befriending members of Hamas, meeting up with Hamas leaders in Gaza on numerous occasions and even calling Hamas his “friends” (and much worse). It turns out that Hamas has returned the favour, running a pro-Corbyn Facebook page with over 72,000 members.
According to JPost:
Hamas officials in both Gaza and London are working in support of Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party, ahead of the UK general election on Thursday.
According to Tazpit Press Service (TPS), the “We Support Jeremy Corbyn” Facebook page, one of the largest and most influential Corbyn support networks globally with some 72,000 members, is managed from the Gaza strip.
For over two years the page was managed by Walid Abu Rouk, a resident of Khan Yunis in the Gaza strip, after Labour Party members added him as a page manager in June 2017, declaring him “our man in Gaza.” Abu Rouk confirmed to TPS that he served as the page’s manager until recently.
However, Rouk also has clear ties to the heart of Hamas’ propaganda efforts. A source in the strip who wished to remain anonymous told TPS “Abu Rouk serves Hamas’ information campaign and is guided by it.”
The official said that Rouk is a key link in Hamas’ English language propaganda service thanks to his excellent command of the English language, and is operating under guidance from Hamas officials.
In recent years, Hamas has taken to placing its people in strategic media locations, including as managers of Facebook pages. Gaza does not have a free press system; rather, news outlets in the strip are required to hand management of their social media accounts over to Hamas to control.
Speaking with TPS, Rouk said that he writes for Al Jazeera, the Qatari owned news network affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, for PALESTINE 24, and for Middle East Eye. He is also the founder of the GP+ media site based in Gaza, which is run by Muhammad Ibrahim Madun, a journalist often quoted internationally as a Hamas affiliate.
But his links extend beyond the Middle East and into London: he also writes for London-based Memo Monitor, thought to be one of the Muslim Brotherhood’s media outlets. Memo Monitor often publishes pro-Corbyn and Labour Party content.
Another senior reporter at Memo Monitor, Motasem Dalloul, also resident in Gaza, edits the Hamas-affiliated website Days of Palestine. According to a source in Gaza, Dalloul also edits the English content on Hamas’ official al-Risala website, and is a key figure in Hamas’ English language propaganda efforts.
Dalloul and Rouk deny knowing each other, despite working for the same website on complementary content, and despite Rouk posting prayers and well wishes for his “dearest friend” Dalloul when the latter was injured several years ago.
Corbyn has in the past accused President Trump of “unacceptable interference” after he voiced an opinion on Boris Johnson. The President having an opinion on someone is not the same as a foreign power actively trying to influence a vote. We wonder if Mr Cobryn will have such strong words for the terrorists of Hamas influencing the UK elections in favour of his party.
Earlier this year Hamas gave Corbyn a “salute” and thanked him for “principled position” regarding the Palestinians. It is no surprise then that his friends are helping him in this election.
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