NY Post Columnist Accuses MSNBC’s Ali Velshi and Mehdi Hasan of Being ‘Hamas-Run’
New York Post columnist John Podhoretz accused two Muslim MSNBC hosts of being “Hamas-run” on Monday, just days after he received backlash over a “disgusting” and “bigoted” attack on a Pakistani-American journalist.
Podhoretz, who in recent weeks has lashed out at several Muslim journalists, took aim at MSNBC hosts Ali Velshi and Mehdi Hasan on Monday.
After Velshi reported that “the Hamas-run Palestinian Ministry of Health says 10,022 Palestinians have been killed & 1.5 MILLION displaced from their homes since 10/7,” Podhoretz responded, “The Hamas-run Ali Velshi uses data from Hamas and tries to make himself clean by calling it Hamas-run.”
“Why don’t you tell us the numbers, John?” shot back Velshi. “Or would you like to just continue to live in your fantasy world where Palestinians get killed and no one counts or cares?”
Podhoretz lashed out at Velshi’s colleague, Mehdi Hasan, across multiple tweets, and accused the MSNBC host of being a “Hamas propagandist” after he defended Palestinian civilians from racist attacks.
“Amazing how you’re willing to be a Hamas shill and yet be unpaid. I assume. Oh well, I guess it’s OK, a Zionist named Brian Roberts is paying you. Isn’t that blood money for you? Just checking, Mehdi,” wrote Podhoretz.
In another post, which quoted one of Hasan’s tweets, Podhoretz declared, “I have nothing but contempt for people who peddle Hamas’s propaganda. Gee, I wonder to whom I might be referring?” while in yet another post he added, “If you’re an MSNBC anchor defending Rashida Tlaib, you are a Hamas propagandist. Not to mention just a very bad human being who deserves to be treated with contempt.”
Podhoretz — who was a guest on MSNBC’s Morning Joe last week — attacked Velshi and Hasan just days after he was condemned for making similar accusations towards Pakistani-American HuffPost journalist Akbar Shahid Ahmed.
“Same dude who called Huff Post journalist @AkbarSAhmed, a Pakistani Muslim American, a ‘Hamas correspondent’ is now going after MSNBC’s Mehdi Hasan, an Indian Muslim American. Hmmmm….notice a trend?” reacted Daily Beast columnist Wajahat Ali on Tuesday.
Hasan himself also condemned the attacks, tweeting, “Podhoretz accused HuffPost reporter Akbar Shahid Ahmed of being Hamas. And now he accuses my MSNBC colleague Ali Velshi of being Hamas. It’s truly sickening the way Muslims in the media are treated during this conflict. The Islamophobia is as brazen as it is unparalleled.”
