BBC recently aroused its audience’s “disgust” and was deemed “out of touch” by the public because of its podcast that glorified the infamous Islamic State (ISIS) bride Shamima Begum, presenting the jihadi as a repentant victim.
The BBC’s investigative journalist Josh Baker stated:
As Shamima challenges the removal of her British citizenship by the UK government, I’ve examined her accounts to give listeners a definitive narrative on this complex, nuanced and shocking story.
The BBC claimed to separate fact from fiction in the glam presentation called “I’m Not a Monster” (even though she is one), while Britain has tried to spare the public from her by stripping Begum of her citizenship and keeping her out of the country.
The BBC podcast which was clearly designed to help Begum as she renews her appeals to return to Britain was a major flop, and further discredited the BBC. The Daily Mail also reported:
Earlier this month the BBC sparked fury as it devoted a 10-episode podcast to the woman who is accused of sewing bombers into their suicide vests while living in ISIS-controlled territory in the Middle East.
Now, BBC filmmaker Andrew Drury has publicly stated that “he initially felt sorry for the former ISIS bride, but has radically changed his mind.”
Andrew Drury’s timing is peculiar. He once “argued that the British government had a responsibility to repatriate British jihadi brides like Ms Begum.” It is a pity that he didn’t voice his new concerns about her prior to the podcast. Had the podcast been a raving success, would Drury have spoken out against Begum? His self-interest may be one thing, but let’s hope that his comments, along with the podcast’s failure, harm Begum’s appeal.
“Shamima Begum ‘sees herself as celebrity’, says filmmaker who met ISIS bride,” by John Varga, Express, January 22, 2023:
A documentary filmmaker branded Shamima Begum “a narcissist” and said she sees herself as a “celebrity”. The 23-year-old former ISIS bride is currently languishing in a Syrian refugee camp, where she is appealing a decision by the UK Government to rescind her British citizenship. Ms Begum originally decamped to Syria to join the Islamic terrorists in 2015, when she was just a 15-year-old teenager.
She is alleged to have sewn bombers into their suicide vests while living inside ISIS-controlled territory, as well as acting as an enforcer for ISIS’s strict sharia lifestyle.
The BBC recently broadcasted a 10-episode podcast about her, bringing Ms Begum once again back into the public spotlight.
Andrew Drury has met and interviewed Ms Begum on several occasions while she has been detained in Syria.
He said he initially felt sorry for the former ISIS bride, but has radically changed his mind.
Speaking to The Times, he explained: “She sees herself as a victim now but she told me quite clearly it was her choice to go [to Syria] and she went of her own free will
“She is a narcissist. She wants to be a somebody. Now she sees herself as a celebrity….
Last July, Mr Drury argued that the British government had a responsibility to repatriate British jihadi brides like Ms Begum….
