Washington: Hundreds of US secret diplomatic cables released by the whistleblower website ‘Wikileaks’ have suggested that the BBC may have been part of a ‘propaganda media network’ for al Qaeda.
The Daily Mail quoted the leaked documents as saying that a phone number of a someone in BBC``s Bush House headquarters was found in phone books and programmed into the mobile phones of a number of militants seized by the Americans.
“The London, United Kingdom, phone number 0044 207 XXX XXXX was discovered in numerous seized phone books and phones associated with extremist-linked individuals. The number is associated with the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC),” the assessment on one of the detainees at the Guantanamo camp, dated April 21, 2007, said.
The U.S. assessment file said forces had uncovered many ‘extremist links’ to the BBC number, indicating that the extremists could be in touch with the sympathetic BBC insiders or who had information on ‘ACM’ (anti-Coalition militia) activities.
An analyst’s note on the file states: “Numerous extremist links to this BBC number indicates a possible propaganda media network connection. Network analysis might provide leads to individuals with either sympathetic ties to extremists or possibly possessing information on ACM operations.”
The BBC number has been figured out in the file of Turki Mish’awi Zaid Alj-Amri, a Saudi who was ‘assessed to be a member of al Qaeda, who travelled to Afghanistan to participate in jihad.’
In September 2006, BBC chairman Michael Grade had held an ‘impartiality summit’ to assess whether there was a left-wing bias, and the leaked documents suggested that executives admitted they would broadcast an interview with Osama Bin Laden, and give him a chance to express his views.
ANI
