Complaint filed against Wall Street Journal employee who shared Hamas propaganda on October 7

HonestReporting is filing a complaint with the newspaper about Istanbul-based reporter Abeer Ayyoub, who used her social media to spread terrorist propaganda while Hamas was killing thousands of Israelis.

By HonestReporting

October 7 was a busy day for Palestinian journalist Abeer Ayyoub, who works for the Wall Street Journal. But not because she was engaged in professional journalism.

The Istanbul-based reporter, originally from Gaza and who reports extensively on the region, used her X account (formerly Twitter) to spread terrorist propaganda and fake news while Hamas was killing thousands of Israelis.

She also abused the social media platform to spread anti-Semitic insults and content condoning Hamas.

Her reporting, and the fact that she contributes to the Israel-hating Middle East Eye newspaper, should raise alarm bells among the editorial staff at the Wall Street Journal, a publication that has always been a bastion of the highest journalistic standards.

HonestReporting has filed an official complaint with the newspaper.

Hamas propaganda

On October 7, Ayyoub posted a violent propaganda video produced by the armed wing of Hamas, showing terrorists lynching and executing Israeli soldiers near the Gaza border.

The terrorists’ faces in the video are blurred to protect them, unlike those of the Israeli soldiers. But Ayyoub probably didn’t care that the victims were recognized by their devastated families, because she wrote a caption that exclaimed: “More Israeli soldiers are captured by Hamas:

Ayyoub said nothing about Hamas slaughtering Israeli civilians or taking hostages that day. She did seem to deflect from them, in a rude response to Israeli Arab Affairs expert Edi Cohen.

Cohen posted the following in Arabic: “In the Quran, God commanded respect for prisoners. The Palestinian militants killed and raped them.” Ayyoub responded: “So you respect them, y’all sh*t?”

She also posted a photo of Hamas terrorists driving a stolen Israeli agricultural vehicle into Gaza, with one of them displaying the victory symbol:

Fake news

Ayyoub also shared fake news targeting the Israeli military. Around noon on October 7, she shared a post claiming that a high-ranking Israeli commander had been kidnapped:

If Ayyoub had been concerned about the accuracy of the news, she would have deleted the post when it was exposed as fake a few days later. But journalistic fact-checking didn’t seem to bother her that day.

About two hours later, in what seems like an uncontrollable passion to humiliate Israel in its darkest hour, Ayyoub also posted: “I haven’t seen a single soldier defending himself. Why? I thought you said it’s the strongest army in the world”:

Ayyoub’s anti-Israel sentiments are often hidden behind the facade of the Arabic language, making it easier for her to remain hidden from her bosses and colleagues in the Western media.

For example, she responded in Arabic to Elon Musk’s October 7 solidarity message with Israel, in which she told him to “eat sh*t”:

A day later, she made a disturbing reference in Arabic to “the Jewish mafia” in response to a post calling Hamas an “Islamic mafia”:

According to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism, Ayyoub’s comment is antisemitic. It falls into the category of “making false, dehumanizing, demonizing, or stereotypical statements about Jews.”

Hamas whitewashing

In addition to her feelings about Jews and Israel, Ayyoub also shared content that indirectly portrayed Hamas terrorists as liberating heroes.

On October 9, she shared a despicable piece from the Middle East Eye titled, “The First Time I Felt Freedom”: When a Palestinian Journalist Crossed the Border into Israel.

She did not remove it when HonestReporting revealed that Gaza journalists collaborated with Hamas to document their atrocities that day.

And a month later, she labeled the description of Hamas as an organization committed to the destruction of Israel and the creation of an Islamic state as “fake news.”

When a journalist is unaware of or ignores the black-and-white statements in Hamas’ founding document, it amounts to covering up a banned terrorist organization.

Journalistic ethics

But Ayyoub is hypocritical and arrogant when it comes to journalism.

Despite spreading terrorist propaganda and fake news, promoting an anti-Israel agenda and whitewashing Hamas, she dared to post a self-righteous thread about journalism a week after October 7.

For Ayyoub, journalism is meant to “amplify the voices of the marginalized” and she worries about those who “do not uphold the principles of the profession,” who “must seek alternative careers so that those who truly value the power of pens and microphones can take the helm.”

Presumably Ayyoub wants to get rid of the journalists who try to tell the story as it is (for example, by reporting that Hamas has vowed to destroy Israel).

But Ayyoub dangerously mixes journalism with activism and blames others for what she does.

Does the Wall Street Journal think it can report objectively on Israel and Gaza without its own views influencing its reporting?

By her own logic, she is the one who should leave this sacred profession to those who truly respect it.

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