ANOTHER UK Journalist Targeted For The 'Crime' Of Criticising Israel!

Right, so following on from the arrest and detention of journalists Richard Medhurst and Sarah Wilkinson, a third prominent and it has to be said, non mainstream journalist has been targeted by the police under frankly the abuse of counterterrorism laws, the real crime of course of writing about what Israel have been doing, are still doing and holding them to account in a manner the Zionist without qualification leading the country right now and becoming ever more unpopular at a rate of knots as he is doing so, Keir Starmer, doesn’t like it. The targeting of journalists writing about the truth of matters in the Middle East based here in the UK since Starmer took over as PM, puts this pretty much beyond doubt in the minds of most people.
Therefore perhaps it’s no surprise that Electronic Intifada Associate Editor and author Asa Winstanley has had his home raided by the police and all of his electronic equipment seized, though has not at this time been arrested.
Journalism is not a crime, but Keir Starmer is trying his damndest to make real journalism, journalism to deliver the truth, to hold power to account, to oppose fascism a crime. He’s trying to cow independent media and alternative media into silence, but that’s the thing with journalism with integrity – the integrity bit matters more – and therefore his authoritarianism will fail, it must fail and every journalist he targets will basically have had a badge slapped on them, saying: this person says important things and we should listen more to them, not less.
Right, so I daresay Keir Starmer does have a warped sense of journalism this is evidently what he thinks passes for it, fawning sycophancy for tasty titbits and nonsensical scoops, but this is nothing of the sort, these people represent grossly overpaid dross, stenography, writing what he says and passing it off as news, mind-numbing drivel to dumb down the populus, it is what mainstream media and their media baron billionaire bosses have done for decades quite successfully.
But now we live in an era of social media, an era of people able to become journalists from their living rooms pretty much, and no longer needing to be born into a silver spoon family to be able to get a leg up on the media ladder, who’s families could support them whist they spent years as unpaid interns at various newspapers.
And you know what? It’s a good thing. It means power is getting held to account by media start ups that go from strength to strength, from Skwawkbox, to Vox Political, to Novara Media, Electronic Intifada, Evolve Politics and more and this has given rise to an army of far better informed activists, and the more media sources you read the better you can formulate your own opinions based on that, foreign media too, and that in turn gives rise to people like me, giving us plenty to talk about, people for whom the mainstream media is too much of a pro establishment force, now challenged by others spreading more of the truth and telling the stories they refuse to and breaking that connection between them and the political classes who are too close.
Alternative media has become a real threat to the status quo and therefore all of those independent journalists have become bigger and bigger thorns in the side of people who would quite like things to stay just as they are and where they might have grumbled about that previously, now an authoritarian and ardent Zionist like Keir Starmer is running the country, all of a sudden alternative media voices, and notably it has been specifically when it comes to Israel, all of a sudden indy media journalists are being targeted and accused of criminal acts, but the only criminal act they’re actually guilty of, is telling the truth about the Israeli regime, the fascist, genocidal apartheid state, it is run by a mad man and an even madder hard right administration, but a state that has far too much influence over ours and our leaders. Being pro Palestine and anti Israel and reporting on that, is it seems a crime now in Starmer’s Britain. We’ve seen Middle East independent journalist Richard Medhurst arrested, a man who’s parents won Nobel Prizes for their humanitarian work in the Middle East, who knows his onions on such matters, yet was arrested and accused of terrorism. We saw the same thing happen to another journalist, Sarah Wilkinson, arrested at her home, all her electronic equipment seized, again the accusation was she was supporting terrorism, when what she does is document and chronicle the plight of the Palestinian people under the Israeli regime.
And now, again under the auspices of counter-terrorism, the police have now raided the home of Electronic Intifada Associate Editor Asa Winstanley.
Winstanley is in my view one of the most prominent, informative and talented investigative journalists in the UK today and his experience and personal knowledge of the Middle East, particularly Israel and Palestine is exemplary, he’s been going out there since 2004 and again, it’s the common denominator when you consider Medhurst and Wilkinson too. It’s counter-terrorism laws being used against pro Palestine journalism, being pro-Palestine is now the crime it seems.
As you might imagine, Winstanley’s own publication, Electronic Intifada, has indeed covered this story, here’s an excerpt:
‘British counterterrorism police on Thursday raided the home and seized several electronic devices belonging to The Electronic Intifada’s associate editor Asa Winstanley.
Approximately 10 officers arrived at Winstanley’s North London home before 6 am and served the journalist with warrants and other papers authorizing them to search his house and vehicle for devices and documents.
A letter addressed to Winstanley from the “Counter Terrorism Command” of the Metropolitan Police Service indicates that the authorities are “aware of your profession” as a journalist but that “notwithstanding, police are investigating possible offenses” under sections 1 and 2 of the Terrorism Act (2006). These provisions set out the purported offense of “encouragement of terrorism.”
An officer conducting Thursday’s raid informed Winstanley that the investigation was connected with the journalist’s social media posts. Attempts to reach the Metropolitan Police Service for comment for this story have been unsuccessful.
Although his devices were seized, Winstanley was not arrested and has not been charged with any offense.’
So let’s break this down a moment. Counter-terrorism command had a warrant to search Winstanley’s home and take his electronics, and it’s to do with possible offences under sections 1 and 2 of the Terrorism Act in relation to encouragement of terrorism, so let’s start with that. This part of the act as far as causing an offence reads:
‘A person commits an offence if—
(a)he publishes a statement to which this section applies or causes another to publish such a statement; and
(b)at the time he publishes it or causes it to be published, he—
(i)intends members of the public to be directly or indirectly encouraged or otherwise induced by the statement to commit, prepare or instigate acts of terrorism or Convention offences; or
(ii)is reckless as to whether members of the public will be directly or indirectly encouraged or otherwise induced by the statement to commit, prepare or instigate such acts or offences.’
This is very open to interpretation, but has apparently been cited in relation to Winstanley’s social media posts, but to be guilty, he has to have induced or encouraged someone to commit an act of terrorism and this is all as the police told Asa, despite the knowledge they had of his profession.
Well, I thought I’ll have a look at Winstanley’s own tweets for the week leading up to this, just as a for instance, to get an idea of what he’s said that might be construed as incitement of terrorism and there is absolutely nothing there, except as you might expect an emphasis on Israel and their conduct.
He has discussed the Hannibal Directive instigated by Israel against it’s own people on October 7th. Posted about the Electronic Intifada livestream, spoke a bout a German novelist saying comparisons of Jewish deaths during WWII at German hands and the killing of Palestinian children at Israeli hands is blood libel. He has posted images that many of us have seen of the victims of the fires at the Al-Aqsa Hospital, struck by Israel. He spoke of Iran’s strike on Israel only striking military targets, he congratulated David Miller on his legal case win which now makes anti-Zionism a protected political belief, he has slammed the double standards in rhetoric used by many mainstream media outlets when talking about Palestinian or Israeli casualties. He talked about the Palestinian struggle under occupation, being a resistance and whether you agree with the methods possibly employed, they are protected under international law. Winstanley has said absolutely nothing that I can see, as expected, that remotely resembles anything advocating for people to commit acts of terrorism. He isn’t telling people how to make explosives, he isn’t pointing out potential targets, he’s doing his job! And his home has been raided for it and he’s the third prominent alternative media journalist to be targeted by the state for basically reporting from the pro Palestine perspective. That’s his only crime.
It is little wonder that human rights groups and activists consider the Terrorism Act 2006 to be an appalling badly drafted and open to abuse piece of legislation, which now is in the hands of a Prime Minister long considered to be a Security State asset, as well as an avowedly pro Israel one. It is fascism being meted out against people speaking out for the oppressed when the government of the day is so in hock to the whims of the oppressor. Well it won’t work. Quite simply, the likes of Richard Medhurst, Sarah Wilkinson, Asa Winstanley and others who have been targeted by the state previously like Craig Murray or Kit Klarenberg will continue to do what they do, because it’s more than a job, journalism is a vocation an honourable profession and their dedication to the truth, to social justice, to holding power to account shows what journalism truly is and inspires many more of us to do our bit too. Equally those of us who amplify their work, cite them as reliable sources that we stake our own reputations on as commentators, will continue to uphold their work as the highest standard of real journalism, in stark contrast to obsequious butt-kissing seen by supposed journalists working for supposedly trustworthy but all too mainstream and far too establishment friendly sources. I stand by Asa Winstanley without a single doubt in my mind, Solidarity my friend. A donation to Electronic Intifada would be a fine way to show your support and flip the bird to Starmer and his police state proclivities in my opinion, so how about it?
Meanwhile, if you’re less familiar with Sarah Wilkinson than perhaps you might be with Richard Medhurst or Asa Winstanley, find out a bit more about her and her arrest in this video recommendation here as your suggested next watch and I’ll hopefully catch you on the next vid. Cheers folks.