🧵Probably the most sophisticated Al Jazeera "journalist" psy-op yet:
You may have seen the headlines today about Al Jazeera journalist Ismail al-Ghoul, who was apprehended by the IDF in Shifa Hospital while it was battling terrorists.
Given the multiple instances since October 7th of Al Jazeera journalists moonlighting as Hamas operatives (or vice versa), I figured I’d take a look into al-Ghoul as well.
What I found was a highly sophisticated, concerted effort to – for lack of a better word – manufacture a "legitimate journalist" out of whole cloth.
2/ Here are al-Ghoul's official journo social media accounts on telegram, x, and facebook. They were all created between November 2023 — February 2024.
And here are his first posts on his official Instagram and TikTok accounts.
In other words, unlike many of the Al Jazeera journalists who have been exposed as terrorists or terror supporters since October 7th due to their social media activity, much of this guy's social media activity was inaccessible.
Or so I initially thought.
4/ Turns out he has a personal Facebook, on which he loves to post his love for Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar
5/ He also glorifies terrorism, like in the cases of Basel al-Arraj, the head of a PFLP cell who was killed in a gun battle in the West Bank in 2017, and Diya'a al-Sabarini, an al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades terrorist who was killed in a gunfight with the IDF
6/ I then found an old disabled X account of his using internet sleuthing stuff.
He used to be a journalist at the Hamas-run news outlets Felesteen and Al-Resalah
7/ I also found that after working for Hamas news outlets, al-Ghoul worked for several "media production companies" in Gaza before moving over to Al Jazeera right after October 7th.
8/ Although al-Ghoul's old X account is disabled and his posts can be seen, I did some more internet sleuthing stuff and managed to find some of his old posts in which he demonstrates his antisemitism and support for terror.
For example:
"The greatest epidemic is the Israeli entity and every Arab trying to normalize it as a reality to coexist with them...
72 years of continuous crime and abuse against Palestinians, the most recent being exposing Palestinian prisoners to the global pandemic.
#Covid48"
9/ Translation:
"Alternative tools are a treasure in the hands of all the young people of the West Bank
#DownWithTheAnnexation_Decision"
10/ To clarify: al-Ghoul's prior TikTok, X, and Instagram accounts were deleted. We know this because the usernames of his new accounts on the platforms all end with the number 2.
It’s no small feat to erase much of someone's social media presence, create new profiles, and then amass hundreds of thousands of followers in just a few months, as seen with al-Ghoul.
The orchestrator of this psy-op invested considerable effort to conceal al-Ghoul’s connections to Hamas and his malevolent beliefs. They recognized the importance of meticulously shaping an image that aligns with the standards of “respected” news sources like Al Jazeera.
Ultimately, they transformed a Hamas operative into an ostensibly "legitimate" journalist, yet whose primary goal is to disseminate Hamas propaganda and demonize the State of Israel, whether through his reporting or now, by elevating his status to that of a martyr following his arrest.
Judging by the public response to al-Ghoul's arrest, it's evident that their strategy was wildly successful.
11/ If you haven't done so yet, I would appreciate if you share my thread to spread the word about this type of nefarious public manipulation.
And while you're at it, please share the legendary @mishtal's thread about the Ghoul as well!
Any time the groypers, Woke Right, or isolationists ask about the benefits of the U.S.-Israel relationship — show them this infographic.
Let's zoom in 🧵
As of 2024, Israel accounted for approximately 18.4% of U.S. goods exports to the region — not 25% like it was in 2011. Still a big fat chunk of change, though.
American R&D centers based in Israel, which is a powerhouse in cleantech, healthcare innovation, and other tech sectors
This latest NYT drivel is making the rounds. Let’s be clear: any food or health crisis in Gaza is entirely the fault of Hamas—as others far smarter than me have pointed out.
But to make matters worse, the piece leans on Hamas-aligned “journalists” and a Jew-hating Gaza doctor🧵
Firstly, one of the co-authors of the piece — and the one reporting on the ground in Gaza — is Saher Alghorra.
As @HonestReporting previously documented, Alghorra had a "questionable" Oct. 7th post and referred to the slaughtered Bibas boys and their mother Shiri as "prisoners."
Now, onto my favorite character from the article: Dr. Ghazi al-Yazji, head of nephrology at Al-Shifa Hospital, and the only doctor cited by name in the entire piece.
Foreign Funding to American Universities: $29 Billion in Four Years!
A major new report by @ncri_io, shared exclusively with @TheFP, reveals a surge in foreign funding of U.S. universities—especially from authoritarian regimes like Qatar and China. Let's break it down 🧵
🔸️ Foreign countries such as China and Qatar have poured nearly $29 billion into American universities between 2021 and 2024 — more than double the total of the previous four years.
🔸️ This $29 billion accounts for nearly half of the $57.97 billion in foreign funding since the federal government began tracking donations in 1986.
🔸️ Qatar is the largest source of foreign donations to U.S. universities since 1986, providing a total of $6.3 billion.
Geoffrey Corn — former judge advocate general in the U.S. Army, senior adviser on the laws of war for the U.S. Army, and now a respected law professor — spoke to The New Yorker about Israel’s operations in Gaza 🧵
Drawing on his unparalleled expertise, Corn offers a clear-eyed explanation of how Israel is applying international law in one of the most complex war zones on earth.
His insights are based on first-hand findings from several trips to Gaza and Israel since October 7th.
🔸 Corn described the devastation in Rafah as looking like "Berlin after World War Two," but made clear that destruction alone does not prove illegality — outcomes must be judged by the decision-making, not by appearances.
Huge breaking: In a major reversal of the Biden admin’s position, the Trump DOJ now says @UNRWA has no immunity from U.S. lawsuits—opening the door to massive claims by Hamas victims.
The DOJ also questions whether UNRWA was legally created in the first place 🧵
In its statement, the DOJ writes that:
"It is highly doubtful that the UN Charter even authorizes the General Assembly to create a subsidiary organ such as UNRWA, because its functions are not the type of functions performed by the General Assembly."
Breaking: I've uncovered that Columbia's Mohsen Mahdawi served as the "coordinator" for Fatah’s Student Movement at Birzeit University.
The group glorifies mass murderers, urges students to become "martyrs," has members who ARE terrorists, and hosts terror parades on campus🧵
The other day, the NYT offered a glowing portrayal of Columbia University's Mohsen Mahdawi, whom they bizarrely portray as a lifelong advocate for peace.
In doing so, they unintentionally helped me find previously unreported facts that show who Mohsen really is.
But first, let's look at some other nuggets the NYT gave us:
This seems to be the first time it's been reported that Mahdawi’s best friend was killed while throwing stones at IDF soldiers.
That’s a far cry from how he told the story in past appearances, like on @60Minutes