The case targeting presenter Rachid M’Barki is linked to a vast disinformation enterprise, reveals an investigation by an international consortium of around a hundred journalists.
The case targeting the presenter of BFMTV Rachid M’Barki, implicated for subjects having suffered an external influence, is linked to a vast enterprise of disinformation led by an Israeli pharmacy, reveals on Wednesday an investigation by an international consortium of 100 journalists. “There is no doubt that BFM is a victim in this story, when one of ours bypasses the chain of command, that is a problem.“, reacted on Wednesday the director general of the info channel, Marc-Olivier Fogiel, on France Inter, after having launched an internal investigation and suspended the 54-year-old journalist.
According to this investigation by the collective of journalists Forbidden Stories, to which the investigation unit of Radio France and The world, this affair is linked to a vast disinformation enterprise led by an Israeli pharmacy, which would sell its services all over the world. The investigative journalists were able to meet a person in charge of this pharmacy in Israel, designated under the name of “Team Jorge“.
He told them, demonstrating in support, to be able to automatically create fake online accounts, automatically generate content on social networks or hack emails or Telegram accounts, in order to influence electoral campaigns in particular. In the case of Rachid M’Barki on BFMTV, the briefs broadcast related to the Russian oligarchs, in Qatar, in Sudan, in Cameroon, or even in Western Sahara and would have been “supplied turnkey on behalf of foreign customers“, according to the investigative consortium.
“Information that (him) came from informants”
The first news channel in France had opened an internal investigation in January due to suspicions against Rachid M’Barki. According to Marc-Olivier Fogiel, the presenter “managed to ask for (some) pictures at the last minute» to illustrate short stories, «once the editor was taken on another installment and validated his entire journal“.
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Questioned in January by the Politico site, Rachid M’Barki had admitted to having “used information that (him) came from informants» and who have «not necessarily followed the usual course of writing“. “They were all real and verified (…) I’m not ruling anything out, maybe I was tricked, I didn’t feel like I was or I was taking part in an operation of je I don’t know what otherwise I wouldn’t have done it“, he continued.