The Jewish Chronicle has bitterly criticized Pakistani You Tubers for their anti-Israel and anti-Jews mind-set and position.
The world’s biggest video sharing platform is hosting extreme antisemitism in the Urdu language, the Jewish Chronicle said Friday.
The rash of antisemitic clips, produced by YouTubers who attract millions of views, spread fake news about Israel, naked Jew-hatred and conspiracy theories about the “Jewish lobby,” JC said.
In an investigative report by Jake Wallis Simons , the JC named a number of Pakistani You Tubers with large following. They include Imran Riaz Khan, Zaid Hamid and Makhdoom Shahab-ud-Din.
Imran Riaz Khan has 1.6 million followers, Zahid Hamid has 335,000 followers while Makhdoom Shahab-ud-Din has 610,000 subscribers. Imran Riaz Khan and Zaid Hamid are also TV anchors.
The Jewish Chronicle quoted analysts as saying that the ‘diet of hate’, easily accessible on YouTube, may have encouraged some of the more extreme anti-Jewish actions in Britain during the latest Gaza conflict.
Rallies held in recent weeks saw numerous anti-semitic outrages, including British Asians prowling the streets shouting: “We’ll find some Jews. We want the Zionists. We want their blood,” the JC report said.
Zahid Hamid
When questioned by the JC about his statement that Hitler was an angel, Hamid denied that he was antisemitic. He agreed that Hitler was a “monster”, he said — but by comparison to the actions of Israel, the German dictator could be seen as an “angel”. “I was comparing the crimes of Hitler against Jews and the crimes of the Israeli state against Muslims,” he said. “Despite the monstrous crimes of Hitler, the Israeli state goes beyond that.”
In the clip in question, Hamid, “[Hitler’s] statement is circulating on the internet that he left a few Jews alive so that future generations will realize why I was killing them.
“There is no doubt that the State of Israel will be uprooted, each and every one who is present there will be resolved. It is written in the Hadith. It is written that stones will call out and say that a Jew is hiding behind me.”
That clip, which targeted English speaking Muslims such as those living in Britain, has clocked up 20,000 views on YouTube, with countless more on other platforms. On Twitter alone, Hamid has 335,000 followers.
In a WhatsApp exchange with the JC, he said: “The Zionist movement is not Judaism and it’s an old trick of the Zionists to hide their crimes behind the antisemitic narratives. I am not against Jews at all, but Israeli crimes are white European Zionist crimes, not orthodox Jewish crimes.”
Hamid and the other prominent Urdu broadcasters are understood to be closely aligned to the Pakistani military and government, according to JC.
Imran Khan
Another television personality, Imran Riaz Khan, has 1.4 million followers on Twitter and 1.6 million subscribers on YouTube. One of his videos alone attracted 1.5 million views, the JC said.
In a clip he posted last week, which has so far accumulated 350,000 views on YouTube, he said: “Jewish lobby. You must have heard this name since childhood. It’s famous all over the world. They do wonderful lobbying all year long and they spend billions on it and promote Zionists.
“They lobby a lot in America and have strangled America, have it totally controlled. They do it in Europe and America and elsewhere. Jewish lobbyists are very strong, and they lobby for others too in exchange of money, for countries, individuals and friends. They have big lobbying firms and it’s a science,” he said adding:
“They have occupied America because they think America is a superpower and they should control it. Anyone who stands in any important elections for the House of Representatives or any other forum, they interview them and view their life and keep an eye on them. Anyone who is in big positions in America, Jews keep an eye on them and spy on their lifestyle and anyone who disagrees with them they create troubles for him. Jews were behind Trump. Similarly anyone else who runs for the Presidency has the Jewish lobby support.”
Imran Khan did not respond to the JC’s requests for comment.
Makhdoom Shahab-ud-Din
In a video posted last week viewed 150,000 times, the provocative Makhdoom Shahab-ud-Din commented on a viral CNN clip in which Pakistan’s foreign minister made an antisemitic slur.
In the YouTube clip, Shahab-ud-Din said: “Whenever you speak against the barbarism of Israel, these Jews throw the card of antisemitism before you, and they will say that you hate Jews and that you are an antisemite.
“I will explain to you how these Jews play this card of antisemitism, and how they are devoid of any logic. When you criticise Zionism, then Jews come together and start attacking. [The Pakistani foreign minister] said they controlled the whole media, and the CNN anchor proved the whole point through her behavior. The anchor was a hard-nosed Jewish, we have done our research.”
When questioned by the JC, Shahabud-Din said: “A difference was presented between antisemitism and anti-Zionism and how criticism of Israeli policies should not be taken as hate for the Jewish community.
“The Jews should not be attacked, the religion should not be attacked. The policies of Israel can be criticized. In my videos I have condemned the killing of civilians on both sides and my heart and prayers are with innocent people who lost their lives.”
Makhdoom Shahab-ud-Din has 610,000 subscribers on YouTube and almost 50,000 Twitter followers.
During the recent Gaza conflict, Shahab-ud-Din broadcast fake news issued by Hamas. He wrongly told his viewers — many of whom shun the ‘main stream media’ — that ‘terrorists’ had entered Israel and seized an arms depot. “Israel has been destroyed brick by brick and several areas of Tel Aviv have been turned into ashes,” he claimed.
When questioned by the JC, he said: “We have to report the story from both sides and that has been done. Any statement attributed to Hamas is not my own statement so quoting someone does not mean the presenter is saying that.”
His videos later became inaccessible as they had been made private. YouTube’s representatives did not respond to a request for comment.
What analysts say?
JC quoted Umer Karim, a visiting Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) who focuses on Pakistan, as saying: “The Pakistani Urdu media discourse, whether electronic, print or digital, is heavily influenced by conspiracy theories that remain overarchingly antisemitic and consider Jews responsible for every wrongdoing in the world, particularly when it concerns the Muslim world.
“These narratives then resultantly fuel extremist attitudes, particularly against Jews who are considered as the centre of all evil, regardless of the fact if they politically support Israel or not.”
Youtube is hosting vile antisemitic content in the Urdu language that is stoking hatred among British Pakistanis, the JC pointed out.
Kamal Alam, a defence analyst specialising in Pakistan, was quoted by JC as saying: “British Muslims, particularly of Pakistani and South Asian origin, have been a source of extremism for a while. In fact, the former Pakistan President, General Musharraf, regularly told British authorities not to blame Pakistan for extremism, but to have a look at your own mosques in Manchester and Birmingham. Extremist groups with a strong presence in Britain, like Hizb ut-Tahrir, are banned in Pakistan.”
These groups have evolved and penetrated Pakistani media. YouTube stars in Urdu share antisemitic discourses, often accusing Pakistan’s prime minister, Imran Khan, of being part of a ‘yahudi’ lobby, Kamal Alam concluded.
Abdus Sattar Ghazali is the Chief Editor of the Journal of America (www.journalofmaerica.net) email: [email protected]
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