I assume from your silence, @martinbright, that you are unable to substantiate the allegations you have made against me. Some more facts for you. @ClarkeMicah @Tim_Hayward_ @RuthSmeeth
https://twitter.com/PiersRobinson1/status/1421337784749641729
1) It is not a matter of dispute that the subject matter of the working group syriapropagandamedia.org is *well established* and *legitimate*; for example, ...
2) ... it is no longer seriously disputed that the UK & US have been involved in a so-called *dirty war* aimed at overthrowing the Syrian government. Professor Sachs makes clear the illegality of this policy in this @MSNBC interview:- @KevorkAlmassian
3) and it is also now well established that the UK government has been involved in substantial propaganda operations aimed at supporting efforts to overthrow the Syrian government; for example middleeasteye.net/opinion/revela… and theguardian.com/world/2016/may…
4) More importantly for you and the article published by @IndexCensorship are the accusations that the WG engages in disinformation and that its members are bad faith actors. These allegations are at odds with the empirical record:-
5) In early 2018, even *before* the WG had issued its first research note, and within weeks of it being set up in January 2018, attempts were made to smear its members via crude and defamatory articles written by Brian Whitaker. more details here:- 
https://twitter.com/OffGuardian0/status/1313487976605904898?s=20
6) And well before any briefing notes on alleged chemical weapon attacks in Syria had been published, its members were subjected to a front page/multiple article attack by the @thetimes in early 2018; @caitoz @leftworks1
7) whilst I was subjected to what can only be described as an unhinged attack by a director of the Henry Jackson Society on @SkyNews:
8) Remarkably, these attacks occurred during the week following the alleged chemical weapon attack in Douma, Syria, and, w.r.t the Times hatchet pieces, at exactly the moment US, UK and France bombed Syria, justified by the claim of Syria Gov. resp. for this alleged attack.
9) It was only many months after this that the first briefing note on Syria was published, in August 2018, following the @OPCW interim report on the alleged Douma chemical weapon attack:- syriapropagandamedia.org/working-papers… @aaronjmate @MaxBlumenthal
10) Then, in early 2019, the @opcw issued its final report on Douma. This followed claims by BBC producer @Dalatrm that the hospital scenes associated with the alleged Douma attack had been staged by the White Helmets
https://twitter.com/Dalatrm/status/1095677403198906369?s=20,
11) This was followed by the *second* only briefing note from the WG on Syria/alleged chemical weapon attack published in April 2019:- syriapropagandamedia.org/working-papers…
12) Since then, as has been extensively documented by journalists @ClarkeMicah and @aaronjmate, as well as others, multiple leaked documents plus testimony from OPCW whistleblowers has more than vindicated research by members of the WG:- hitchensblog.mailonsunday.co.uk/2019/11/new-se…
13) whilst many, many, experts and respected individuals have voiced support for OPCW scientists who have spoken out about the corruption of the @opcw Douma investigation:- thegrayzone.com/2021/03/14/5-f…
14) Even Jose Bustani, the first Director General of the @opcw has spoken in support of two of the @opcw's most experienced scientists, Brendan Whelan and Ian Henderson:-
14) Many of the key procedural and scientific issues, still unresolved, with respect to the Douma fact finding mission here can be read in this thread and also here berlingroup21.org/background:-
https://twitter.com/PiersRobinson1/status/1379668154792734720?s=20
15) It is also relevant that controversy over chemical weapon allegations in Syria dates back many years, long before me and the WG: See for example Seymour Hersh's work on the 2013 Ghouta attack:- lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v36/…
16) Indeed, the recent @Rootclaim study has presented powerful new empirical support of Hersh's work:-
https://twitter.com/Rootclaim/status/1405891184443199488?s=20@CL4Syr @MichaKobs
17) To conclude, the allegation made by you and @indexcensorship about a dishonest group of researchers pushing disinformation is profoundly deceitful.
18) It censors the easily demonstrable fact that the WG was subject to a crude smear campaign even before it produced any substantive reports on the Syria chemical weapon issue. *Clearly some people did not want us to even start researching propaganda and the war in Syria.*
19) It censors the easily demonstrable fact that our research questions and analysis have been corroborated, indeed vindicated, by the emergence of whistleblower scientists from within the OPCW as well as senior officials:-
20) And it censors the fact that many experts and eminent figures have also questioned the @opcw Douma investigation;- couragefound.org/2021/03/statem…
21) And rather than engage with *any* of these facts, @martinbright @RuthSmeeth and @IndexCensorship, you instead endorse fact-free smear campaigns against academics/researchers plus censor the existence of OPCW whistleblowers.@ClarkeMicah @Tim_Hayward_ @aaronjmate @MaxBlumenthal
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