Posted on 05/27/2003 11:23:15 PM PDT by El Conservador
DUBAI (Reuters) - Al-Jazeera television said on Tuesday it would replace its chief executive officer but insisted the decision had not been due to allegations the channel had been infiltrated by Iraqi intelligence.
Spokesman Jihad Ballout said CEO Mohammed Jassem al-Ali, who headed the channel since its launch eight years ago, would remain on the board of directors but would hand over the day-to-day running to someone else.
"Mohammed Jassem al-Ali was seconded from Qatar Television to set up and run Al Jazeera and what has been decided is that this secondment be ceased and for him to go back to his normal job," Ballout said.
"Changes take place for various reasons and for Mohammed Jassem al-Ali to remain on the board means that all these rumors and allegations about Jazeera are not taken at face value whatsoever," he told Reuters.
Britain's Sunday Times said this month that documents uncovered by opponents of ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) showed that there were three Iraqi intelligence agents working inside al-Jazeera with the aim of gaining favorable coverage.
Al-Jazeera, which often aired exclusive material from Iraqi officials during the U.S.-led war, denied the report.
The channel came under fire from U.S. and British officials for broadcasting TV footage of soldiers slain and imprisoned during the war. But it was also criticized by the Iraqi authorities for what they called its pro-American coverage.
Al-Jazeera correspondents were temporarily banned from the New York Stock Exchange (news - web sites) and from reporting in Iraq (news - web sites).
Al-Jazeera gained international renown after the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States by airing exclusive audio and video comments from Osama bin Laden (news - web sites) and senior members of al Qaeda, the group blamed for the attacks.
Al-Jazeera's coverage of the war on Afghanistan (news - web sites) -- where one of its correspondents was accused of being part of the now-defunct Taliban government -- and the war on Iraq both boosted its popularity. Its slick, no-nonsense approach to news has earned it the nickname of the "Arab CNN."
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