MSNBC aired footage that was shot by a pro-Hamas social-media influencer with an extensive track record of attacking Israel as an “apartheid” state that intentionally targets women and children.
Citing the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry in a Friday segment, MSNBC reported that the Israeli military has bombed the Al-Shifa Hospital — the largest medical facility in Gaza, which Israel believes to be the location of a Hamas base — at least five times since Thursday night. The news channel then aired a first-person video featuring Saleh Aljafarawi, which shows the Palestinian man’s hands covered in blood.
The social-media influencer can be heard shouting in Arabic, “We carried them with our hands … our hands. They bombed them … bombed them inside the hospital. Oh God, oh God, please God, have mercy on us.”
MSNBC features a video recorded by a known Hamas-linked crisis actor.
Host Chris Jansing quotes him like he’s an innocent civilian.
The man in the video has appeared in other videos as a doctor, dying in a hospital, and a rescue worker, among other roles. pic.twitter.com/ARdilmzxyK— Nicholas Fondacaro (@NickFondacaro) November 10, 2023
MSNBC portrayed Aljafarawi, who has 3 million followers on Instagram, as a disinterested witness, neglecting to mention his extensive history as a pro-Hamas social-media propagandist. A review of Aljafarawi’s Instagram account reveals that he routinely demonizes Israel as “occupiers” and accuses them of intentionally targeting women and children in airstrikes.
In one clip, shared by Israel’s official X account, Aljafarawi celebrates the firing of rockets toward Israel, grinning and shouting, “Allahu Akbar,” meaning “God is most great.”
(Thread) The devil works hard but Gaza’s “film” industry works harder.
Meet Saleh Aljafarawi, Hamas presenter, father, patient, singer, journalist and crisis actor.
He’s just one example of how Hamas is using social media to spread misinformation and shape false narratives… pic.twitter.com/1AWPDSY0uV
— Israel ישראל 🇮🇱 (@Israel) November 6, 2023
In another video of a crying two-year-old Palestinian boy, whom the social-media influencer said was “rescued from under the rubble,” Aljafarawi refers to Israel as an “apartheid” government and refers to the child as Israel’s “target.” There is no evidence of Aljafarawi criticizing Hamas on his social-media accounts or pointing out that the terror group intentionally hides men and materiel near critical civilian infrastructure such as hospitals to deter Israeli attacks.
The Israeli government has accused Aljafarawi of being a “crisis actor” on its official Twitter account, citing several social-media posts in which the young Palestinian man appears to have taken on different roles, including that of a doctor.
This “Hamas crisis actor” has become notorious for miraculously appearing in multiple Hamas propaganda videos in different roles and locations across the Gaza Strip.
Individuals across social media are calling Saleh “the man with more lives than a cat”. pic.twitter.com/GUNSW2UA7P
— Israel ישראל 🇮🇱 (@Israel) November 6, 2023
Although pro-Israel accounts and the Israeli government consider him a “crisis actor,” The Times of London pushed back on that allegation in an article which claims that some of the photos in which he appears to be taking on different roles have benign explanations and were simply taken out of context.
At least one image, which appeared to show Aljafarawi as an injured hospital patient, was “taken from the video of a different man, who faintly resembled him,” named Mohammed Zandeeq. That particular video was first posted in August, The Times reported.
“Still another showed a person in a white body bag sitting playing with their phone, suggesting Aljafarawi had been posing as a corpse,” the article read. “In fact, the picture showed a Thai child dressed up for Halloween and had been posted online at least a year ago.”
The London publication, however, did not mention most of the other videos, apart from the one that appeared in the MSNBC news segment, or photos that Israel shared online.
National Review contacted MSNBC for comment.