Al Jazeera presenter claims Palestinians are ‘Semitic’ unlike Israelis
Ghada Oueiss sparred with critics and defended her comment, sharing a photo of a book that supported the hypothesis
An Al Jazeera presenter has suggested on Twitter on Thursday that Palestinians are “Semitic” – unlike Israelis.
“This Holy Land belongs to Palestinians Because Palestinians are Semitic unlike the Israeli Khazars who are occupiers !!” tweeted Ghada Oueiss, a Qatar-based news presenter.
The Khazar theory claims that European Jews are the descendants of Khazars, a Turkic people who lived in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, rather than from Jews who originated in the Middle East.
The theory has been used by antisemites and anti-Zionists to discount Jewish claims to the land of Israel. Scholars have discounted the theory.
Oueiss sparred with critics and defended her comment, sharing a photo of a book that supported the hypothesis.
In May, the Qatari news channel suspended two journalists for making a video in which they said the Holocaust is “different from how the Jews tell it.”
Al Jazeera has been contacted for comment but did not immediately reply.
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