Islamic State hires British journalist for propaganda

DHAKA, Bangladesh - June 27, 2019 - PRLog -- Synthia Rozario

Following fall of Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, this jihadist group, similarly as Al Qaeda has entered the next phase of jihad, which is continuing through internet and print and electronic media. According to analysts in the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and other top intelligence agencies in the world, combating cyber-jihad is far difficult and challenging in comparing to the physical war against those jihadist groups. Recently, terror-patron Qatar has already penetrated deep inside the US media and on June 4, 2019, being substantially compensated, the Washington Times published a "special section" of articles lavishing praise on Qatar, its institutions, and its global influence. Each of these articles was labeled as "sponsored," although the Washington Times neglected to say by whom. At first glance, this was a surprising insertion in a conservative paper whose editorial board has previously been critical of the Middle Easterner countries.

According to a report by Martha Lee, Research Fellow at the MEF, and Sam Westrop, director of the Forum's Islamist Watch project and analysts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Qatari money is everywhere, in previous years its influence had been perceived mostly on the European and American left.

For past many years, Middle Eastern countries are spending lavishly in buying media in the West as well as journalists and media personnel. According to reports published in various news outlets, each year, the amount of Islamic charity fund known as zakat exceeds few billions dollars, and instead of using that fund for the under-privileged people, it is being used in being used in buying voice of secularist and non-Muslim media outlets in the world.

Amongst the Gulf countries, Saudi Arabia alone collects more than US$ 35 billion from zakat every year. Saudi Arabia is the only country in the Gulf to both impose a zakat payment, income tax and corporation tax, which it assesses and collects under its Department of Zakat and Income Tax. The kingdom levies zakat on Saudi, GCC nationals and businesses.

In United Arab Emirates, the amount of zakat collected from the millionaires stood at least US$ 8 billion. On the other hand, Qatar, another oil-rich nation in the Gulf though has not institutionalized zakat payment but it does have a Zakat Fund which is voluntary and as in the UAE, can be paid online. According to statistics, annual amount of zakat collected in Qatar is also above US$ 5 billion.

According to assessment, the global collection of zakat per year would be more than US$ 600 billion.

Although zakat fund is supposed to be used for helping the poor and upliftment of their lives, Muslim nations in the Gulf are using such fund in patronizing media houses around the world, especially in the non-Muslim nations.

British journalist hired by Islamic State funder

Since 2009, a Bangladeshi has been living in the United Kingdom thus skipping imprisonment in Bangladesh.

According to newspaper reports, Md. Shahid Uddin Khan and members of his family had smuggled-out millions of dollars from Bangladesh since 2009 and deposited into various bank accounts in United Arab Emirates. This family also has purchased immigrant status in Britain under Visa Tier 1, VAF Number 511702, and invested over 18 million pounds, while the entire amount had been dirty money.

Sitting in Britain, Md. Shahid Uddin Khan and his family are operating their businesses in Dubai [in United Arab Emirates]. According to newspaper reports, this family is having business relations with notorious Dawood Ibrahim's D-Company and has been involved in trafficking in drugs and arms.

Strangely enough, a British-born journalist David Bergman, instead of joining the global efforts of combating radical Islam and jihad has joined hands with Islamic State funder Md. Shahid Uddin Khan and has been working as his media adviser. On January 17, 2019, Dhaka residence of Md. Shahid Uddin Khan was raided by the members of the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of Bangladesh Police. This house is owned by Md. Shahid Uddin Khan and was allegedly used as a warehouse for arms, explosives and propaganda materials of Islamic State (ISIS). During the raid, a large volume of weapons, detonator, counterfeit Bangladesh currency notes and jihadist materials of ISIS were recovered by the CTTC unit.

Following this recovery, three separate cases against ISIS-funder Md. Shahid Uddin Khan, his wife Farjana Anjum, daughters and other accomplices were lodged. The cases are Cantonment PS, Case no 10, Section-6(2)/7/11/12 of Anti Terrorism Act 2009 (amendment 2013); Cantonment PS,  Case no 11, Section-25-A,  Special Power Act 1974; and Cantonment PS, Case no 12, Section-19-A of Arms Act 1878.

Since 2018, British national and self-styled investigative journalist David Bergman and exiled Bangladeshi journalist in Sweden Tasneem Khalil are under monthly payroll of Mr. Khan, while Khalil has deeper ties with terror-patron Qatar.

Tasneem Khalil has been feeding misleading information to Al Jazeera against Bangladesh's Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI) to Al Jazeera and subsequently this terror-network has broadcast several programs with the ulterior motive of defaming this organization. It should be mentioned here that, DGFI has been at the forefront of Bangladesh's ongoing battle against Islamist militancy.

While Khalil is engaged in continuing propaganda against Bangladesh being briefed by Shahid Uddin Khan as well as another individual named Shahidul Alam, a controversial photographer and pro-jihadist Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI), Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) as well as few more organizations such as Hizb Ut Tahrir (HUT). During his student life, Tasneem Khalil has been linked to HUT.

British journalist David Bergman is at the background of such activities of Tasneem Khalil and Shahid Uddin Khan as his father-in-law, Dr Kamal Hossain is a political associate of JeI and BNP in Bangladesh. He also has been writing and blogging with misleading information against Bangladesh government quite regularly. He also has been trying to buy spaces in some of the British newspapers, similarly as the recent deal between Qatar and the Washington Times, with the intention of getting his propaganda materials published. Pretty soon we shall know, which British news outlets have sold their souls to Bergman and his funders.