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| Fifth Column |
| Aljazeera Sacks Yvonne Ridley |
| 2003-11-19 |
| Dissent being crushed! I blame John Ashcroft. Not EFL, this was too tasty. Yvonne Ridley, a senior editor with Al-jazeera’s newly launched English website in Doha, Qatar, has been sacked by her Gulf bosses. Oh, dear! Not Yvonne! The journalist, who rose to international fame in September 2001 when she was captured by the Taliban in Afghanistan, joined the website in July. Last night Sister Yvonne said she was bewildered and hurt but until she had written confirmation of being fired and the reasons why, she was unable to comment further. "I can say no more." In the last two years Yvonne has become an international peace campaigner and Um, no, not exactly. Keep reading. Exclusive stories and pictures revealing US soldiers searching and tying up Iraqi and Afghani children have been condemned by the US Central Command. ‘It is not beyond the bounds of possibility that Ridley’s revealing stories have led to her downfall. The site has already pulled two anti-American caricatures after managers received pressure from the Americans,’ said one source close to Aljazeera. Nope, that’s not it either. Read on... The man responsible for sacking Sister Yvonne is Abdulaziz Ibrahim Al-Mahmoud who issued the order but did not have the guts to confront her with it, instead he sent his secretary to deliver the news to Sister Yvonne’s home in Doha. Wuss. Couldn’t stand up to a girl. But we’re getting closer to the real reason we won’t have her breathless prose to kick around anymore... Al-Mahmoud is not a big fan of hers after she derided him for shopping in Marks and Spencer during a recent trip to London with his eager-to-please sidekick Ahmed Sheikh. Marks and Spencer is the famous Israel-supporting shop which is boycotted by many Muslims in the UK! BINGO! It’s the Jooos fault by proxy as usual. Can’t have an Al-Jazeera big caught shopping at a Zionist occupied department store. In recent weeks Al Mahmoud has escorted two parties from the US embassy around the offices of Aljazeera, giving Sister Yvonne’s work station a wide berth because of its anti-war and anti Bush messages as well as a Palestinian flag situated there prominently! Unfortunately, Marks and Spencer were all out of surprise meters. Though I doubt they work all that well anyway. The regime in Saudi Arabia has also not escaped Sister Yvonne’s attention — something not lost on Al-Mahmoud who was refused entry to the Kingdom recently. Hmmm...catching your boss in an act of hypocrisy and then ratting out your boss’ boss...yep that sounds like grounds for termination to me. She’s probably lucky to not get stoned. But who is Yvonne Ridley?! Yvonne Ridley was a journalist of the famous London Mirror newspaper. She was captured by the Taliban when she went undercover into the country wearing the all-enveloping burqa dress of an Afghan woman. She was detected and was held for 10 days before being released on humanitarian grounds on the orders of Gee, Marks and Spencer seem to be out of sympathy meters too. Now it is OUR turn to stand staunchly by her side. At least we should demand answers from Aljazeera as to why she was sacked. Rantburgers? Here’s YOUR chance to make a difference! What you can do... |
| Posted by:Seafarious |
| #19 So, we should all write to Al-Jiz and congratulate them on FINALLY doing the "right thing"???? Firing this lady won't do anything for their reputation, but should relieve part of the stench. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2003-11-20 12:19:18 AM |
| #18 How pathetic a newsperson do you have to be to get canned by AlJiz? Evidently, as pathetic as Yvonne. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2003-11-19 11:13:09 PM |
| #17 LOL Even as we speak I am going thru my MAD cd collection for the Sound of Money Issue. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2003-11-19 5:18:50 PM |
| #16 I hope they follow up this hit single with "How Do You Solve a Problem Like Mustafah?" |
| Posted by: Dar 2003-11-19 5:11:52 PM |
| #15 Jeez Mike how about a little coffee warning? Some of the lyrics in Burka Blue include: "You give me all your love, you give me all your kisses, and then you touch my Burka and do not know who is it" Kinda catchy in a Tammy W. sort of way. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2003-11-19 1:59:44 PM |
| #14 It just never ceases to amaze me what some people will do for ATTENTION in this life. Sounds to me to be a perfect candidate for Dr. Walker and his crew. |
| Posted by: Jack is Back! 2003-11-19 1:18:32 PM |
| #13 Shipman, Dar: Singing burkas, eh? Have a listen to this. |
| Posted by: Mike 2003-11-19 1:00:02 PM |
| #12 "rose to international fame" ? Kee-rist, at best she was a lunatic footnote. My god, how celbrity-hood has been dumbed down.... |
| Posted by: Carl in N.H. 2003-11-19 11:49:49 AM |
| #11 Bomb-a-rama: Ridley's credibility! Might as well look for unicorns. The Independent had a terrific interview with her in the spring. Fred posted about it, but the links no longer work (that was back in the days when it was free). I've reproduced some of the Independent's article here. Caution: Many of the links in that post no longer work, including the link back to Rantburg. |
| Posted by: Angie Schultz 2003-11-19 11:48:35 AM |
| #10 Her anti-Bush views are universally known and there are fears among colleagues that her vocal criticisms of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan may have led to her demise. Well, that pretty much crushed any credibility she may have had as a "journalist". Time to start looking for a new career. Maybe she can move to San Francisco and become a professional protester. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2003-11-19 10:59:32 AM |
| #9 Visualize Blue Burkha Music Box playing "Climb Every Mountain". Rich! We'll be rich I tell ya! I'd throw away the fortune just to see OBL (Deceased ) face when he hears the burkha start playing. |
| Posted by: Charles 2003-11-19 10:48:59 AM |
| #8 Mr. Ballout, eh? What a name. |
| Posted by: Atrus 2003-11-19 10:42:56 AM |
| #7 It's just too, too sad. Poor little Yvonne has her dreams crushed by the chauvanism of the very chauvanist society she loved so much. Kinda pathetic. Note to self: add M&S vouchers to Xmas shopping- and wishlists. |
| Posted by: Bulldog 2003-11-19 10:38:28 AM |
| #6 Dar LOL! Visualize Blue Burkha Music Box playing "Climb Every Mountain". Rich! We'll be rich I tell ya! |
| Posted by: Shipman 2003-11-19 10:11:56 AM |
| #5 What's this "Sister" Yvonne B.S.? The article states she's a recent convert to Islam, so is she some twisted Muslim nun? Does she sing "Climb Ev'ry Mountain" from under her burkha? |
| Posted by: Dar 2003-11-19 9:27:41 AM |
| #4 Uh... Yvonne, I hear that Arafish is looking for boomers! Just dont forget to set the timer 1 hour ahead to avoid Zionist time. Its hard to be too biased toward the boomers for Al-Jaz but she managed it. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-11-19 9:25:06 AM |
| #3 and Ahmed Ben Bella, former Algerian President and revolutionary leader Whoa! Golden Oldie. I thought he had joined the choir invisible. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2003-11-19 8:11:27 AM |
| #2 Sooo, what are we writing for? Her inclusion in Palestinian 'martyrdom' operations?(aka: murder) Inquiring minds want to know. |
| Posted by: badanov 2003-11-19 7:11:54 AM |
| #1 Is Al-Mahmoud pronounced 'al mac mood'. Once clued I'm like a lazer. |
| Posted by: Lucky 2003-11-19 12:46:59 AM |