Tala Halawa
Tala Halawa is a Palestinian journalist based in Ramallah and a former BBC News reporter. She was dismissed from the organization after a series of anti-Israel and anti-Semitic comments.
Career
Tala Halawa began her work at BBC News and BBC Monitoring as a digital journalist and Palestinian affairs specialist in 2017. She published several reports about the Israel-Palestine conflicts during her times in BBC.
Controversy
In May 2021, Tala Halawa was found that she had posted anti-Israel and anti-Semitic tweets in the midst of the 2014 Gaza war. In one tweet from July 2014, Halawa wrote: "#Israel is more #Nazi than #Hitler! Oh, #HitlerWasRight #IDF go to hell. #PrayForGaza." and in another tweet, shared by pro-Israel media HonestReporting, Halawa wrote: "Zionists can't get enough of our blood." As Halawa was reporting on the 2021 Israeli-Palestinian Crisis, doubts about her credibility as a neutral and objective reporter were raised. The BBC then launched an investigation into her social media activity. A BBC spokesperson stated that these tweets were "very seriously”.
Her statement, blaming her dismissal on "pro-Israel groups," has been seen by many as a deflection and excuse, rather than an apology. Media analyst Emanuel Miller responded to Halawa that she downplayed her own antisemitism and portraying herself as the victim instead.
Career
Tala Halawa began her work at BBC News and BBC Monitoring as a digital journalist and Palestinian affairs specialist in 2017. She published several reports about the Israel-Palestine conflicts during her times in BBC.
Controversy
In May 2021, Tala Halawa was found that she had posted anti-Israel and anti-Semitic tweets in the midst of the 2014 Gaza war. In one tweet from July 2014, Halawa wrote: "#Israel is more #Nazi than #Hitler! Oh, #HitlerWasRight #IDF go to hell. #PrayForGaza." and in another tweet, shared by pro-Israel media HonestReporting, Halawa wrote: "Zionists can't get enough of our blood." As Halawa was reporting on the 2021 Israeli-Palestinian Crisis, doubts about her credibility as a neutral and objective reporter were raised. The BBC then launched an investigation into her social media activity. A BBC spokesperson stated that these tweets were "very seriously”.
Her statement, blaming her dismissal on "pro-Israel groups," has been seen by many as a deflection and excuse, rather than an apology. Media analyst Emanuel Miller responded to Halawa that she downplayed her own antisemitism and portraying herself as the victim instead.
Comments