Want another reason to ban Press TV?
The Bureau of Investigative Journalism accuses Iran’s Press TV of “faking dozens of accounts of US drone strikes in Somalia which it says killed hundreds of civilians.” The Pentagon doesn’t comment on drone strikes, so fabricating them is surprisingly easy:
No representatives from the UN, Amisom (African Union Mission in Somalia), NGOs or journalists in Somalia were able to confirm the strikes. Tony Burns, director of operations at Somali charity Saacid, which operates from Mogadishu, said that Press TV’s casualty figures are ‘simply not possible’.
‘SAACID’s experience has been that Press TV does have a penchant for exaggeration: in the past they have published conflict reports which, in reality, never occurred, and casualty figures that are simply not true.’
A senior UN official focusing on Somalia agreed, said: ‘Press TV is not a reliable source. It exaggerates and openly fabricates reports.’
Earlier this week, Houriya Ahmed called for British authorities to shut down Press TV.
The truth is distorted and its reports manipulated to fit the Tehran regime’s agenda . . .
Free speech laws should not extend to hosting the propaganda service of a belligerent government. As long as Press TV is funded by the current Iranian regime, the closure of its London operation is a necessity.
I’m glad to see The Guardian and Daily Telegraph picked up on Iran’s predatory press pieces.
(Image of Predator via Wikimedia Commons)
