Galloway Under Fire After TV Slur

Totally Jewish
Dec. 02, 2005

Anti-Israel politician George Galloway came under fire yet again this week after he told an Arab television interviewer that Zionists control the media.

The Bethnal Green and Bow MP’s latest comments came after he was introduced as “a former member of the British Houses of Parliament” during a live interview with Qatari Al-Jazeera television.

He responded: “I am still a member of parliament and was re-elected five times. On the last occasion I was re-elected despite all the efforts made by the British government, the Zionist movement and the newspapers and news media which are controlled by Zionism.”

Mark Gardner, Director of Communications at the Community Security Trust, said: “This is despicable language for a Member of Parliament to use. Suggestions of Jewish media control can only give encouragement to anti-semites of every type.”

During the interview, which was broadcast on 17 November, Galloway accused Israel, Britain and the United States of targeting Syria because of the “good things” it had done, such as supporting “Palestinian resistance” and refusing to make peace with Israel.

He also described Senator Norm Coleman, the leader of the US Congressional investigation into Galloway’s alleged oil deals with Saddam Hussein’s regime, of being “the strongest supporter of Israel in Washington”.

He added: “Almost all politicians in Washington blindly support Israel. Senator Norman Coleman, the senator who was accusing me is the closest friend of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.”

Ben Novick, Director of Media Relations at BICOM, dismissed Galloway’s allegations about zionist control of the media, adding: “We hope that Al-Jazeera’s premonition of Galloway as a former MP will soon become a reality.”

Galloway has a long history of controversial comments about Israel and zionism. In September he told an American radio station that “Israel and dirty tricks have a long history”.

At the time, he told TJ: “I believe that Zionism has exploited the Jewish people as much as the Palestinian people and has turned the people of Einstein and Epstein into one apparently represented by Sharon and Netanyahu.”

Galloway himself was unavailable for comment yesterday, but a Respect Party spokesman said the interview with al-Jazeera was in-line with his stated views.

Galloway ousted Labour's Jewish MP Oona King in May's general election.