The upcoming News and Documentary Emmy Awards have become embroiled in controversy following reports that a Palestinian journalist nominated for her work on the Gaza war has alleged ties to the Palestinian Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
Bisan Owda, who has 4.7 million Instagram followers, is nominated in the "Outstanding Short News Report" category for her Al-Jazeera documentary "It's Bisan from Gaza and I'm Still Alive," which documents her experiences in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, when Hamas terrorists stormed Israel, killing some 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians, and took over 200 hostage.
🧵 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐧 𝐎𝐰𝐝𝐚 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞́
Bisan Owda, the Peabody Award-winning and Emmy-nominated queen of Gaza propaganda, is a member of the PFLP terrorist organization.
Here she is in 2015 leading a rally celebrating the PFLP's 48th anniversary, looking very journalist-y pic.twitter.com/T7Izziqs5w
— Eitan Fischberger (@EFischberger) July 27, 2024
However, recent investigations have revealed Owda's suspected connections to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, an organization designated as a terrorist group by several countries, including the United States and the European Union. Pro-Israel Activist Eitan Fischberger first brought attention to these alleged ties about two weeks ago, presenting evidence of her involvement with the PFLP.
A 2018 post on the PFLP's website identified Owda as a member. In an earlier interview with a Palestinian media outlet, she appeared wearing military fatigues and a PFLP scarf. Speaking in Arabic, she stated, "The most important thing is the people in Gaza, the West Bank, and Jerusalem. Together, they will not relinquish even for a moment their land, their right to their land. They will not abandon their goal and their revolution at all."
The interview took place at a PFLP event, where children and men were seen wearing masks and holding knives and flags of Hezbollah. The following year, Owda hosted a similar event, which she opened with a moment of silence "in memory of the souls of our martyred saints" – referring to Palestinians who killed Israelis in terror attacks.
Since the war began, Owda has used her platform to criticize Israel on multiple occasions, claiming that Israel is "committing genocide and slaughtering Gazans every second." Regarding the events of Oct. 7, she wrote, "What could be expected after 75 years of occupation and after 17 years of siege? Would the families of the prisoners remain silent?"
Owda has also refuted claims that UNRWA workers participated in the Oct. 7 attack, despite numerous testimonies indicating otherwise and the UN's recent admission that nine UNRWA employees indeed took part in the attack. She characterized the killing of 12 children in Majdal Shams by Hezbollah nearly two weeks ago as "propaganda."
The Television Academy, responding to inquiries from the Daily Wire which broke the story, stated that the awards are distributed by independent judges who vote anonymously after the projects have undergone peer review.
