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TweetAn op-ed column by Hamas co-founder Mahmoud al-Zahar, an active leader of the group in Gaza was published on the Washington Post on April 17,2008 laced with anti-Israel sentiment in which he praises Jimmy Carter for meeting with Hamas.
Their reasoning for publishing a Hamas article? Because it could:
“provide some clarity about the group he helps to lead, a group that Mr. Carter contends is worthy of being included in the Middle East peace process.”
So Steve Emerson, brings up another good question…Did WaPost pay Hamas their standard fee for this article?
There is a more immediate question at stake: Did the Post pay its standard fee for Zahar’s column? The Post compensates guest writers with a minimum $200 fee, spokeswoman Rima Calderon said. Other factors, including whether the column was solicited or had multiple authors, could increase the amount. So, what did the Post pay Zahar?
“As I suspected, we don’t make this information public,” Calderon said in an e-mail.
Payment of any amount could violate U.S. law banning material support or other transactions with the designated terrorist group Hamas, said Jeffrey Breinholt, senior fellow and national security law director at the International Assessment and Strategy Center. Breinholt knows the law well. Before taking leave last summer, he was the deputy chief of the Department of Justice’s counterterrorism section.
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