Media outlets face House GOP investigation over Hamas-embedded journalist reports

EXCLUSIVE — House Republicans launched an investigation Thursday into several media outlets over unearthed footage and images showing freelance journalists for the companies embedded with Hamas during its Oct. 7 terrorist attack against Israel.

Photojournalists Hassan Eslaiah, Yousef Masoud, Ali Mahmud, Hatem Ali, Mohammed Fayq Abu Mostafa, and Yasser Qudih were at the center of a November article called Broken Borders: AP & Reuters Pictures of Hamas Atrocities Raise Ethical Questions — which was published by a watchdog group called Honest Reporting. The article prompted Israel’s government to demand that CNN, the New York Times, the Associated Press, and Reuters review possible “collusion” between their freelancer journalists and terrorists.

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Now, 15 GOP lawmakers are asking leaders from these outlets to hand over detailed information about the six photojournalists and communications with them, leaving the door open to issuing subpoenas, according to a letter obtained by the Washington Examiner.

“As you know, estimates are that over 1,200 Israeli civilians were murdered in this horrific attack, including hundreds of children,” Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA) and the 14 House members wrote in the letter Thursday to CEOs Mark Thompson of CNN, Meredith Kopit Levien of the New York Times, Daisy Veerasingham of the AP, and Reuters president Paul Bascobert. “Over 200 Israeli men, women, and children were kidnapped and held in Gaza, where torture is rampant. If these photojournalists had prior knowledge and failed to alert authorities, they may be complicit in the death of hundreds of innocent civilians and numerous war crimes.”

The letter underscores how legacy media outlets have faced intensified scrutiny for using freelancers who pro-Israel lawmakers and advocacy groups worry either participated in or may have at least been aware of the Oct. 7 attack before it transpired. Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) sent separate letters last month to Attorney General Merrick Garland and executives at CNN, the AP, Reuters, and the New York Times to demand answers over Hamas-embedded journalists.

The AP and CNN announced in November they were cutting ties with Eslaiah, who, in since-deleted Facebook posts, shared an image of himself being kissed on the cheek by Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar as well as a video appearing to show Eslaiah on a motorbike in Gaza on Oct. 7 holding a grenade. However, CNN said last month that it “found reason to doubt the journalistic accuracy” of Eslaiah, who also was pictured standing in front of a burning Israeli tank on Oct. 7.

Alex Brandon/AP

Honest Reporting’s article also focused on Masoud, who documented the Oct. 7 attack against the Jewish state as a freelance photographer. The New York Times released a statement on Nov. 9 in response to the watchdog’s report, accusing Honest Reporting of making “vague allegations about several freelance photojournalists working in Gaza” and rejecting that “anyone at the New York Times had advance knowledge of the Hamas attacks or accompanied Hamas terrorists during the attacks.”

“Though Yousef was not working for the Times on the day of the attack, he has since done important work for us,” the New York Times said in the statement. “There is no evidence for Honest Reporting’s insinuations. Our review of his work shows that he was doing what photojournalists always do during major news events, documenting the tragedy as it unfolded.”

In the Thursday letter, Clyde and the Republicans informed the outlets that Congress has been in touch with the Departments of Justice and State “regarding the possibility” that the freelancers could be “designated as terrorist affiliates.” The lawmakers, who set a Dec. 22 response deadline, asked for the names, nationalities, and employment statuses of Eslaiah, Masoud, Mahmud, Ali, Fayq Abu Mostafa and Qudih.

They are also requesting communications or transactions, including phone logs and financial records, between the news outlets and the journalists, as well as possible communications between the journalists and “Hamas members prior to, during, and following the October 7 attack,” according to the letter.

The lawmakers want to know what times the journalists were at the Israeli border on Oct. 7, any disciplinary actions taken against the journalists, their policies “on ethical obligations to report impending violence,” and any potential communications the news outlets “had with government officials prior to the attack regarding potential warnings,” the letter showed.

“Our Congressional Committees take these allegations very seriously and will use its oversight authority to fully investigate this matter and ensure proper accountability,” the letter read. It was also signed by Reps. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA), Ryan Zinke (R-MT), Ralph Norman (R-SC), Ben Cline (R-VA), Greg Steube (R-FL), Andy Ogles (R-TN), Andy Biggs (R-AZ), Alex Mooney (R-WV), Mary Miller (R-IL), Eli Crane (R-AZ), Randy Weber (R-TX), Glenn Grothman (R-WI), Russell Fry (R-SC), and Mark Alford (R-MO).

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The Washington Examiner contacted CNN, the New York Times, Reuters, and the AP for comments.

“We will not rule out subpoenas if the requested information is not provided promptly,” the Republicans wrote in their letter.