‘We aired lies’: Al-Jazeera staff quit over biased Egypt coverage

From The Washington Times

By Jessica Chasmar

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The Washington Times

The Qatari-owned media company Al-Jazeera saw 22 members of its staff in Egypt resign on Monday over what they allege was “biased coverage” of the events that unfolded in Cairo last week.

Al-Jazeera correspondent Haggag Salama was among those who resigned, accusing the station of “airing lies and misleading viewers,” Gulf News reported Monday.

Former anchor Karem Mahmoud said he left because of “biased coverage.”

“I felt that there were errors in the way the coverage was done, especially that now in Egypt we are going through a critical phase that requires a lot of auditing in terms of what gets broadcasted,” he told Al Arabiya. “My colleagues have also resigned for the same reason.”

“The management in Doha provokes sedition among the Egyptian people and has an agenda against Egypt and other Arab countries,” Mahmoud told Gulf News.

He added that the channel’s management would instruct staff members to favor the Muslim Brotherhood.

Journalist Abdel Latif el-Menawy, who was head of the Egypt News Center under ex-president Hosni Mubarak, said that Al-Jazeera was a “propaganda channel” for the Brotherhood.

“Al Jazeera turned itself into a channel for the Muslim Brotherhood group,” el-Menawy told Al Arabiya. “They are far away from being professional. When the Muslim Brotherhood collapsed, they continued to play the role.”

The network made headlines on Sunday when it called for the release of two staff members who reportedly were detained in its Cairo office earlier last week during a raid by the Egyptian military.