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September 2006

September 2nd 2006

'Nasrallah Interview' was a hoax

A clarification and apology to our viewers.

On 12th and 13th August, the Turkish newspaper Evrensel published what was claimed to be an interview with the Hizbollah leader Sayeed Hasan Nasrallah, conducted by Roza Cigdem Erdogan and Mutlu Sahin.  The US  journal Counterpunch carried an English version of most of the 'interview'; a different English translation of the whole 'interview' was published by this magazine (21st Century Socialism).  The 'interview' appeared in whole or part in many publications around the world and aroused plenty of interest.

Following some controversy about the authenticity of the piece, Hizbollah has declared that Hasan Nasrallah did not give this 'interview'.  Evrensel has issued an apology to its readers and has strongly criticised Roza Cigdem Erdogan and Mutlu Sahin, who had provided the piece on a freelance basis.

We also apologise for our part in carrying a fraudulent story. 

At the present time, the objectives and motivations of the two authors are unclear. 

A fuller account of the affair can be found in Counterpunch: www.counterpunch.com