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FLASHBACK: Washington Post Calls ISIS Terrorist 'Austere Religious Scholar'

Four years ago today, the 'democracy dies in darkness' crowd mourned the loss of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi

October 27, 2023

What happened: Four years ago today, the Washington Post mourned the demise of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist group, in an obituary describing the dead scumbag as an "austere religious scholar with wire-frame glasses."

• The Post eventually changed the obituary's headline in response to widespread outrage and mockery.

Crucial context: Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi exploded himself (and several of his children) after getting trapped in a tunnel during a raid by U.S. special forces on October 27, 2019.

• Oddly enough, the students at America's so-called prestigious colleges and universities did not respond to al-Baghdadi's death—or the bombing of ISIS targets throughout Syria—by staging a bunch of pro-terrorism rallies. The ISIS leader and his thug followers were not widely praised in the United States as "martyrs" or "decolonizers" or "freedom fighters."

• The response to the Israeli campaign to eradicate Hamas, the terrorist group that murdered more than 1,400 Jews earlier this month, has been noticeably different. Students and activists across the country have gathered to celebrate the killing of Israeli civilians and antagonize Jews. In some instances, Jews have been advised to "stay away" from these anti-Israel protests for their own safety.

• The Washington Post is a failing newspaper owned by hairless billionaire Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon. Its motto is "democracy dies in darkness." For no apparent reason, the paper continues to employ an army of tedious and undistinguished columnists such as Jennifer Rubin.

Why it matters: The American mainstream media often struggle to cover terrorist atrocities and the barbarians who commit them. Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, recently scolded MSNBC commentators for using euphemisms such as "fighters" or "militants" to describe Hamas terrorists who slaughtered women and children.

• The New York Times and other media outlets published headlines implicating the Israeli military in the bombing of a hospital in Gaza on October 17. The reports were based entirely on claims from Hamas officials, which turned out (predictably) to be lies. In fact, a rocket fired from within Gaza toward Israel malfunctioned and landed in a parking lot near the hospital. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D., Mich.), a notorious anti-Semite, has refused to correct, much less apologize for, her accusation that Israeli bombed the hospital.

Bottom line: Never trust a journalist. They are the worst.