Gaza
photographer exposed as Hamas propagandist, Suddeutsche Zeitung found out Turkish
state photographer selectively documented Gaza suffering while omitting
successful food distribution, BILD reports.
As photos of hungry Palestinian
children holding empty pots sparked mass protests condemning Israel for Gaza starvation and influenced international politics
worldwide, a German investigation by Süddeutsche
Zeitung reveals these powerful images may be systematically
staged as part of Hamas terrorist propaganda operations, BILD reported.
One widely circulated photograph
recently showed desperate people gathered before a food distribution truck.
Photographer Anas Zayed Fteiha, allegedly a freelance journalist commissioned
by Turkish news agency Anadolu,
stood facing the crowd. According to BILD,
the sequence shows people waving their containers before receiving food
distribution; however, Fteiha did not provide these follow-up images and failed
to respond to BILD's inquiry
about which photographs he captured there.
The
investigation found that while other photographers documented adult men
successfully receiving food distribution at this scene, Fteiha appears to
selectively document only initial desperation while omitting evidence of
successful food distribution, relating it to his personal views on the Gaza
War. Fteiha's Instagram account features "Free Palestine" artwork
depicting him in combat gear labeled "Press," created by an artist
who openly expresses hatred toward Jews, and the investigation also found a
video headlined "F**k Israel" on his social media. Beyond his social
media posts, the photographer works with europe.palestine.network, which
describes itself as a "pro-Palestinian collective" conducting
"global actions in Europe" that documents Palestinian hardship in
Gaza while promoting "resistance" against Israel internationally.
Turkish state agency connection
Fteiha
works as a photographer and video correspondent for a news organization
directly controlled by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who has
promoted, financed, and harbored Hamas terrorists over multiple years,
according to BILD.
The
German publication contacted photo agencies about using photographs from
Fteiha. Deutsche Presse-Agentur and Agence France-Presse confirmed they avoid
working with Fteiha and examine photographers' backgrounds before
publication. Reuters stated their photos "satisfy standards
for accuracy, independence, and impartiality." The German Journalists'
Association told BILD that warring parties strategically
deploy images to influence public opinion, noting that Israel's prohibition on
independent reporters entering Gaza has created conditions where nearly
exclusively Palestinian photographers operate within the territory.
Hamas controls Gaza imagery
The
investigation found that many of the Palestinian photographers who operate
within the Gaza Strip have Hamas connections. Historian and photography expert
Gerhard Paul told Süddeutsche Zeitung that "In southern
Gaza, Hamas controls 100 percent of image production," to generate Western
sympathy while inflaming anger toward Israel, according to Paul, a method that
was used by Hamas and other Palestinian terror organizations before.