Gaza Journalist: I'm not a Hamas member and I never supported Corbyn

Last week the Israel-based Tazpit Press Service (TPS) reported that the “We Support Jeremy Corbyn” Facebook page, which has some 72,000 members, is managed from the Gaza Strip.

By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
Walid Abu Rouk (photo credit: Courtesy)
Walid Abu Rouk
(photo credit: Courtesy)
A Palestinian journalist from the Gaza Strip, whose name was recently mentioned as being a Hamas member and supporter of British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, has denied the claims.
Walid Abu Rouk, 30, who also described himself as a human rights activist, told The Jerusalem Post on Monday that he was never a member of, or affiliated with Hamas. He further denied that he was a supporter of Corbyn.
Abu Rouk confirmed, however, that he had been “invited to be a co-admin on a pro-Corbyn fan page,” saying he was only asked “to post occasional updates about daily life in the Gaza Strip under the blockade.”
Abu Rouk said he used his own name for every post he made and did not hide his identity.
Last week, the Israel-based Tazpit Press Service (TPS) reported that the “We Support Jeremy Corbyn” Facebook page, which has some 72,000 members, is managed from the Gaza Strip.
According to TPS, Hamas officials in both the Gaza Strip and London were working in support of Corbyn’s Labour Party ahead of last week’s UK general election.
Hamas has strongly denied the report, accusing Israeli media of spreading lies. Hamas claimed that it does not meddle in the internal affairs of any country.
TPS claimed that Abu Rouk, a resident of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip who writes for Al Jazeera and the Hamas-affiliated Palestine 24 and Middle East Eye website, was added as a page manager of the pro-Corbyn Facebook account in June 2017. The agency claimed that he “has clear ties to the heart of Hamas’s propaganda efforts.”
Speaking to the Post by phone, Abu Rouk said that he was never affiliated with Hamas. “In fact, I’ve always been opposed to Hamas’s policies,” he said. “At no point in time was I ever associated with Hamas. I have even been arrested and interrogated by Hamas in regard to my humanitarian work in the Gaza Strip. I’m entirely politically unaffiliated and only represent myself. My only mission is to report about the suffering of the people in the Gaza Strip.”
Abu Rouk insisted that he was never a supporter of Corbyn, although his name appeared as one of the managers of the Facebook page in support of the Labor Party leader.
“There’s no way I would ever interfere with the UK election. I never posted a single post on the pro-Corbyn page supporting him or Labour Party,” Abu Rouk stressed. “I’ve only learned about Corbyn through his crucial support and recognition of our basic humanity, something that is ignored by other British politicians. I was never asked to carry out any activities supportive of him by any party whatsoever.”
Abu Rouk said that he now fears for his life after being labeled a Hamas member. “That false accusation will bar any hope of exercising my right to freedom of movement,” he added. “Travel outside Gaza is already nearly impossible. Now, the smear will make it nearly impossible for me to get a permit to travel through Israel. I am a man of love; I am a man of peace. This is what I do, this is who I am. I’m opposed to violence.”


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