NBC drops Palestinian freelancer after arrest for allegedly celebrating Hamas attack

NBC news says it has cut ties with a Palestinian reporter who worked for the network after she was arrested by Israeli authorities on suspicion of inciting to terrorism.

East Jerusalem resident Marwat Al-Azza is accused of celebrating on social media the kidnapping of Israelis on October 7.

In one post she allegedly wrote about an elderly woman taken to Gaza: “It’s killing me, it’s a black comedy, the old woman looks happy, a bit of action before she dies.”

On another: “Sirens all the time, the Jews are hiding and the Arabs are out drinking coffee on their balconies.”

NBC said in a statement: “The investigation of Ms. Azza is unrelated to NBC News. It is based on her personal Facebook posts that predate her time with us as a freelancer. We were not aware of those posts before we engaged Ms. Azza four weeks ago. She will not be contributing to our coverage going forward.”