UK journalist: Syria rebels led me into death trap

Channel 4 News’s Alex Thomson says he was deliberately set up to be shot by military so rebels could score propaganda coup

Free Syrian Army members fire at targets as they train on the outskirts of Idlib, Syria, Thursday (photo credit: AP)
Free Syrian Army members fire at targets as they train on the outskirts of Idlib, Syria, Thursday (photo credit: AP)

LONDON (AP) — A British journalist claims that Syrian rebels set him up to die in a no man’s land near the Lebanese border, saying he believes they hoped he would be shot by government forces.

Channel 4 News’s chief correspondent Alex Thomson said in a blog post Friday that a rebel escort led him, his driver, and his translator to a dead end in “free-fire zone” around the town of Qusair.

He says it was “quite clear the rebels deliberately set us up to be shot by the Syrian Army,” adding that if he and his colleagues were shot by government forces then it would have been a propaganda coup for the rebels.

In an email, Thomson said there was “absolutely no way” that Monday’s incident was an accident.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.

Most Popular
read more:
If you’d like to comment, join
The Times of Israel Community.
Join The Times of Israel Community
Commenting is available for paying members of The Times of Israel Community only. Please join our Community to comment and enjoy other Community benefits.
Please use the following structure: example@domain.com
Confirm Mail
Thank you! Now check your email
You are now a member of The Times of Israel Community! We sent you an email with a login link to . Once you're set up, you can start enjoying Community benefits and commenting.