On June 15, 2024, the Qatari-owned London-based Al-Quds Al-Arabi daily published an article titled "War Criminal Blinken Wages Diplomatic Campaign to Eliminate the Palestinian Resistance and Buy Time for the Israeli War in Gaza." Penned by the paper's Washington correspondent Ra'ed Salhah,[1] the article is an analysis of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken's speech at the June 11 conference in Jordan discussing the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.
Salhah wrote that Blinken's statements prove that he "lies as he breathes" and that he is leading a pro-Israel "disinformation campaign." He further claimed that Blinken had "helped Israel to perpetrate dozens of crimes and massacres," underlining that Blinken is Jewish in order to explain his open support for Israel.
This article in a Qatari paper, published three days after Blinken's visit to the country, is an example of the anti-U.S. incitement in its media as well as of the clear support for Hamas by Qatar and its media, as presented in numerous MEMRI reports.[2]
The article in Al-Quds Al-Arabi (Source: Al-Quds Al-Arabi, London, June 15, 2024)
The following are translated excerpts from Salhah's article:
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In the article, Salhah asserted: "The declarations by the American foreign minister Antony Blinken during his last trip to the Middle East prove that this man 'lies as he breathes' and that his only concern is to buy time for Israel's blood-drenched war with Gaza, to mobilize the region against the Palestinian resistance, and to normalize relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia."
Salhah went on to write that Blinken's "misleading declarations" even touched on "details" of measures that should be taken to help the civilians in Gaza. Stating that Blinken had for years claimed that the U.S. was the main provider of aid to the Palestinians, Salhah wrote that Blinken "ignored the fact that it is the main supporter of the Israeli war against Gaza, and a full partner in the destruction of the Gaza Strip, the expulsion of the residents, and the killing of thousands of civilians, and that the U.S. is the country that is directing a campaign to disband the largest UN agency for assisting the Palestinians [i.e. UNRWA]."
Labelling Blinken's speech "a blatant disinformation campaign," Salhah noted that his call for ensuring that Gazans can live in peace and dignity "raises many questions, and amazement" because it contradicts Blinken's statements about Israel's war in Gaza. Blinken, he said, "helped Israel perpetrate dozens of crimes and massacres in Gaza, when his ministry several times ordered weapons and bombs sent to Israel use in the war." He added that Blinken does not want the Palestinians to live in peace but for them to completely surrender to Israel, and that he "certainly does not see the humanity of the 'other,' for if he did, he would immediately quit his post."
Noting that Blinken is Jewish, Salhah wrote that he "always takes pride in being the first Jewish American foreign minister" [sic][3] and that he "does not try to downplay [the importance of] his being Jewish in order to remain in his position, and openly supports the Israeli occupation." Salhah added that Blinken's grandfather played "a significant role in persuading the American government that a Jewish state should be established."
Salhah further asserted that prior to Blinken's appointment as secretary of state, his opponents has criticized his support for U.S. intervention in conflicts in the Middle East and called for him to be prosecuted if he supported this intervention in additional foreign conflicts. He wrote: "It is not expected that anyone will prosecute Blinken; he is not expected to stop his lies, and it isn't even expected that he will quit his position at the head of the largest diplomatic institution in the world, in order to [continue to] serve Israel's wars."
He added that the angry protestors in the U.S. often called Blinken a "war criminal" because of his support for Israel.
[1] Salhah is also the editor of the Qatari news website Arabic Post. The Arabic Post was founded in 2018 by the Integral Media company, which was established by Wadah Khanfar, the acclaimed Palestinian journalist and former director-general of the Qatari Al-Jazeera media network.
[2] For more on Qatari hypocrisy, see: MEMRI Special Dispatch No. 11338, Article In Qatari Daily Al-Watan: 'The U.S. Will Come Back With The Bodies Of Its Slain And Its Hostages, Humiliated And Defeated', May 21, 2024; MEMRI Special Dispatch No. 11336, State-Sponsored Qatari Children's Magazine Justifies Terror, Incites Against Jews, Israel And U.S., May 20, 2024; and MEMRI Special Dispatch No. 11171, Anti-American Cartoons In Qatari Press: U.S. Unreservedly Supports 'Bloodshed' In Gaza; Will Be Relegated To Trashcan Of History, March 6, 2024.
[3] Secretary of State Henry Kissinger (1973-1977) was also Jewish.
