CNN Whitewashes Palestinian Soccer Star’s Terror Ties.

CNN Whitewashes Palestinian Soccer Star’s Terror Ties.HT: ClarionProject.By Emily.

The network neglects saying that the star is a member Palestinian Islamic Jihad, a group responsible for many suicide bombings.

Critics came down hard against CNN for a running glowing story about Mahmoud Sarsak, a Palestinian soccer player who is in the news for boycotting Israel. In the feature piece, the network neglects to mention that Sarsak is a member of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), a terrorist group responsible for suicide bombings in nightclubs, restaurants, and supermarkets.
The CNN profile of Sarsak, written by James Montague, begins with sympathetic descriptions of his hunger strike against Israeli authorities and downplays his ties to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, critics say.
In the article, Sarsak complains about how the professional soccer league, the UEFA, has decided to hold its latest tournament in Israel, provoking his (failed) boycotting efforts. Sarsak claims he suffered "abuse" at the hands of the Israelis while under arrest for suspicion of links to terror groups.

CNN neglects to inform readers of all the ties Sarsak has to the PIJ. As the Washington Free Beacon pointed out, Sarsak has a history of associating with the PIJ. The news outlet reports a series of examples in the public domain that show just how close Sarsak is to the terror group:
In July of 2012, Sarsak was depicted in a photo on the Islamic Jihad's "Saraya" (the military wing) website wearing a PIJ scarf and being hoisted on the shoulders of PIJ operatives during a homecoming parade thrown in his honor when he returned to the Gaza Strip.

Further, Nafez Azzam, who is known as a "senior Islamic Jihad official," said that Sarsak is "one of our noble members." Sarsak became a popular figure among the terrorist group after he was released from an Israeli prison for his involvement with the PIJ. He went on a hunger strike for 93 days to protest his incarceration.

"The reporter makes a romantic figure out of someone with ties to Islamic Jihad and shows zero scepticism about Sarsak’s rendition of events," Andrea Levin, director of the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA) told the
Washington Free Beacon. "CNN shouldn’t be in the business of whitewashing. Viewers need the whole story."
"There’s no context for readers to understand why Israel would detain someone like this. It’s not made clear that Islamic Jihad is a terrorist group responsible for suicide bombings in nightclubs, restaurants, and supermarkets,” continued Levin. “In fact, CNN skirts saying directly [that] Sarsak is connected to Islamic Jihad, only that Israel ‘accused’ him of such links."
"CNN signed on for a campaign to whitewash a terrorist, which is despicable," said an official who wanted to remain anonymous.Hmmmm......."Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. 16You shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? 17Even so every good tree brings forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree brings forth evil fruit." ~ Matthew 7:15 - 17.Read the full story here.