DISINFO: White Helmets are part of Al-Qaeda for sure
SUMMARY
What does James Le Mesurier’s history have to do with the humanitarian work that is supposed to be the work of the “White Helmets”? Everyone knows that they are part of Al-Qaeda for sure. These people, along with bin Laden’s death, with Baghdadi’s recent killing, all these people are killed because they, first of all, hold important secrets, they have become a burden and their role is over.
RESPONSE
Conspiracy theory; no evidence given. This is a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the White Helmets, a humanitarian organisation of volunteer rescue workers also known as the Syria Civil Defense, and their recently deceased founder James Le Mesurier. The White Helmets have documented some of the worst atrocities carried out by the Syrian government and the Russian military, and as a result, Russian and Syrian media have consistently sought to delegitimise them through portrayals as a Western-backed “terrorist organisation".
No evidence is given to substantiate the claim that Le Mesurier has connections to Al Quaeda and/or other terrorist groups. This case, as well as the insinuation that the White Helmets were involved in producing fake evidence of chemical weapons attacks in Syria, are a continuation of smear campaigns against civilian rescuers in Syria that have been circulating in pro-Kremlin media for years.
For further disinformation cases about the White Helmets, see here. For cases about the war in Syria, see here.