DW fires Palestinian journalists for being "anti-Israel"
3 Min Read
The slightest criticism of "Israel" or European favoritism of Zionism could cost you your job in the West nowadays.
German state media Deutsche Welle has dismissed Palestinian journalist Maram Salem, after a German journalist published a report accusing her of "anti-Semitism" and being "anti-Israel" in reference to her Facebook posts.
However, this dismissal did not end with Maram, but also stretched onto Palestinian-Jordanian journalist Farah Maraqa, who tweeted that she received a notice, without any explanation, that she is fired from DW on similar grounds. Basil Al-Aridi, Daoud Ibrahim, and Murhaf Mahmoud have also become the victims of an Israeli-sponsored media purge, as they had also been laid off.
I just have been notified without further explanations that I will receive a notice of termination from Deutsche Welle with immediate effect. I have not yet been informed about the reasons, nor been handed out the report on which these allegations shall be based!
— Farah Maraqa (@Farah_Maraqa) February 7, 2022
In a post on her Facebook account today, Maram said that the referred piece published did not contain any anti-semitic expression, and had no mention of "Israel," and that she had only spoken about freedom of expression in Europe.
The text in the post read: “Freedom of expression and opinion in Europe is an illusion. There are many red lines if we decide to address the issue. The encryption that we usually do is not aimed at hiding posts from Facebook. Rather, to prevent automatic translation from revealing the meanings of our words to the observers (and delegates) here, who are ready to send a request to either dismiss us, or to deport us."
Salem contended that the dismissal was a result of 'malicious internal conflicts and incorrect rumors," saying that she found herself suddenly in the middle of it all, and that she was used as a scapegoat for DW to get out of this current crisis.
The investigations into said crisis, however, were not impartial: An Israeli was appointed to the investigation committee only to find herself facing unjustified accusations because she was Palestinian.
The investigative body asked her: "How do you write that there are no freedoms while you work for Deutsche Welle?" For context, here's a tweet with DW' editorial policy on Israeli news:
Here's an inside memo sent around to people at Deutsche Welle concerning how to talk (or rather not) about Palestine and Israel's ongoing brutalization against Palestinians. All in response to @AliAbunimah Truly disgusting from German media. pic.twitter.com/p04u7MyNwF
— Corner Späti (@cornerspaeti) May 15, 2021
Her dismissal, in addition to the nature of the investigation, does not take into consideration the historical nature of the Israeli oppression against Palestinians, pointing out that DW considered that it is the only party allowed to determine the criteria for the "reality of the conflict" and which side is right, despite the failures of the international and Arab body in "resolving the crisis" between Palestine and "Israel" for more than 70 years.
Maram, who is from Al-Khalil, contended that merely being Palestinian is enough of a reason to be accused of anti-Semitism. She held DW responsible for her mental and physical well-being during the period of investigation and the coming period, in addition to facing any consequences as a result of this issue in her professional future.
"Working for an international media outlet - that has always sung about freedoms - would be different, and you [Deutsche Welle] proved that media is not really free, and that journalists will be publicly prosecuted for simply saying "there is no freedom of expression."
