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The Last Clown in Aleppo: ‘Mr. Alhamdo’ Does Bad Monty Python for Al Jazeera and CNN
21st Century Wire says…
“This is my last message.” If you’ve been watching Western and Gulf state mainstream media coverage over the last two weeks, or even just social media, you will have seen this popular meme – the last doctor, the last hospital, the last message, the last video, the last tweet, and even the last apple. It won’t be long before ‘the last person in Aleppo’ appears on Twitter – and you can be sure that CNN and Al Jazeera will be there to give it the Orson Welles War of the Worlds treatment.
Since it began in 2011, the Syrian Conflict has seen levels of western-oriented media propaganda and outright fakery that is almost incomprehensible. As with every western political announcement, nearly every single piece of Western and Gulf state news on Syria is spun in favor of what is called “the opposition.” The manipulation takes many forms, but mostly it relies on self-styled “activists,” said to be reporting real events on the ground in Syria, but only exclusively from “rebel-held” areas. Since the war began, these “activist” and “rebel” reports have comprised roughly 90% (a conservative estimate) of all western mainstream media reporting. The reason for this is because western politicians and their media partners decided (based on their own fake news coverage) very early on that the Syrian government, or “The Regime” was guilty of various and sundry ‘crimes against humanity‘ and was therefore illegitimate, and thus should be categorically ignored. This is evidenced by numerous statements in support of “regime change” and “Assad must go,” as the stated foreign policies made by western leaders, namely the NATO allied nations led by the US, UK, France, Canada and Turkey.
Perhaps the most precarious of all the ‘last’ series, is “The Last Clown in Aleppo.” This story was released in early December, with coverage synchronized across every major Western mainstream media outlet. Here is what CNN reported:
“Clown and entertainer Al-Basha, 24, was killed Tuesday in a missile strike in the Mashhad neighborhood of the city’s rebel-held east, his brother Mahmoud Al-Basha told CNN.”
“Al-Basha was a director at Space for Hope, a local non-profit that has worked to provide civil services to people living in the war-torn opposition area.”
CNN stated that its footage of a “children’s party” from was shot by “activist group” Aleppo Media Center, July 2015, showing a costumed and face-painted Anas al-Basha, playing with an adorable little girl, as children sing along.
If the story of Al-Basha is exactly as CNN and the Aleppo Media Center say, then certainly it is a tragedy. It would be an even bigger tragedy however, if this person’s demise is being used to further a cynical Western political agenda.
Is such a perfect picture really possible amid the Al Nusra-occupied East Aleppo? The story portrayed in the Western media has all the hallmarks of a perfect public relations release, and based on the level of visible media manipulation going on, it’s certainly possible that this story has been twisted to demonize the Syrian state and its Russian partners.
This single story is part of a much bigger theme. You can be sure, there is much more to this story than meets the eye…
Philosophers stone – selected views from the boat http://philosophers-stone.co.uk
Source: http://www.philosophers-stone.co.uk/?p=16701
