Nearly a full year after HonestReporting exposed False Photo Tweeter Khulood Badawi as a staff member of the Jerusalem branch of the UN Office of Coordinated Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the UN has concluded its lengthy investigation and removed Badawi from its staff.
Badawi gained attention last March during an uptick in violence between Israel and Hamas that lasted several days. Badawi tweeted a photo of a father carrying a bleeding girl, strongly suggesting that the girl was a victim of an Israeli airstrike that day. The photo, however, was taken in 2006 and had no connection to Israel.
After HonestReporting’s expose started to appear in the press and our petition calling for Badawi’s dismissal began gaining momentum (ultimately reaching 15,000 names), Israel’s Ambassador the UN, Ron Prosor took up the issue, demanding the UN immediately remove Badawi from her post.
The UN responded by launching an investigation into the matter – and sending Badawi on an extended vacation. This week, however, the Jerusalem Post reported that the UN sent out an email announcing that following the investigation, the UN has opted not to renew Badawi’s contract.
The saga of Khulood Badawi proves that grassroots efforts can be successful, even if it takes a year for a final resolution. Even the mighty UN can be moved to action if we maintain our solidarity in our demand for justice.
