LONDON: A Twitter post by Palestinian BBC journalist Tala Halawi is currently being investigated by the broadcaster after a screenshot of her supposedly praising Hitler was published online on Monday.
The tweet, from 2014 and before Halawi’s time as a journalist for BBC Monitoring, sparked controversy because while it appears to condemn the actions of Israeli Defence Forces (IDF), it also appears to praise Hitler with the hashtag #HitlerWasRight.
Halawi tweeted: “#Israel is more #Nazi then #Hitler ! Oh, #HiterWasRight #IDF go to hell. #PrayForGaza”
Halawi, a Palestine specialist for the BBC, was heavily criticized by Twitter account Honest Reporting, which resurfaced her old tweet. “Halawa directly influences and creates news content watched by many millions around the world. In what world can someone like this work for a professional news outlet?”, the account posted.
Halawi had been covering the recent violence in Gaza and had recently published an article on Bella Hadid’s position on the Palestine conflict.
The BBC said that while the tweets predate Halawi’s employment with the broadcaster, the matter is being investigated seriously.
The Halawi controversy comes only a few days after the Associated Press (AP) fired correspondent Emily Wilder for violating the AP’s social media policy. The violations were related to Wilder’s tweets in solidarity with Palestinians and Gazans during the wave of violence perpetrated by Israel.
