thegreaterjihad:

by Sheila Musaji

As I was updating the articles Extremist Christians Produce Anti-Muslim Film Blame Jews and The tragic consequences of extremism about the tragic murders of our Ambassador and embassy staff in Libya, and the protests around the world, and the anti-Muslim film that seemed to have sparked much of the unrest, there were a couple of statements and oddities about the film and its producers that bothered me.  At the back of my mind was an idea that something about this film sounded familiar. 

What sometimes makes it difficult to remember particular connections, and to then research the sources, is that the individuals and organizations, and events of the Islamophobia industry are called by different names.  Many of the individuals use various pseudonyms, the organizations frequently change their names, etc. 

Here is a passage from my article on the film.  It is long, but necessary to see all of the connections:

Based on all of the reports that have come out in the last few days, here is a summary of what we now know about the film and its producers. (see The Tragic Consequences of Extremism for details, references, links to sources, etc.)
   
The film called “Innocence of Muslims” (after having been called “Desert Warrior” and “Innocence of bin Laden”) was originally identified by AP as produced by Sam Basile.  AP interviewed him by telephone.  The person identifying himself as Sam Basile claimed to be an Israeli American and Jewish,and to have raised $5 million from 100 Jewish donors to make the film.  He said that the trailer of the film available on YouTube was part of a 2-hour film.   He said that he made the film “to help his native land by exposing Islam’s flaws to the world”,  and he called Islam “a cancer”.  After the terrible events in Egypt and Libya, and after the story about the film became a news item internationally, he was reported to have gone into hiding in fear for his life.

It appears that Sam Basile was invented to cover the activities of at least four individuals- Steve Klein, Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, Morris Sadek, and Joseph Nasralla Abdelmasih.  Klein is an extremist Evangelical, and Nakoula, Nasrallah, and Sadek are extremist Copts.  So, extremists Christian Islamophobes engaged in an elaborate subterfuge, creating a non-existent Sam Basile and providing Basile with a biography that falsely represented him as an Israeli Jew whose film was financed by 100 other Jews to help Israel against the “cancer of Islam.”  The film was produced by Media for Christ at the Blue Cloud studios in California. 

The problem is that they made a hateful anti-Muslim film designed to provoke a response, promoted it in English and Arabic, and then engaged in a hateful scheme to blame their handiwork on Jews.  Egyptian political extremists used the film to stir up the masses to promote their political agenda.  The extremist political organization Al Qaeda used the film as a pretext for their terrorist attack on the U.S. Embassy in Libya, as well as using the film as further “proof” of their propaganda effort to say that the U.S. is at war with all Muslims to gain support for their cause.  

The identity of Sam Basile is clearly Klein/Nakoula/Sadek/Nasrallah*

  
There may be others involved, but it will probably take time to identify all of those who engaged in what can only be called an anti-Muslim, anti-Semitic, and in the end anti-American conspiracy. Here is what we now know about these men:

Steve Klein, an extremist Evangelical,  first told the AP that the filmmaker was an Israeli Jew, and that he was only a consultant on the film. He now says that Sam Basile is a pseudonym as part of a disinformation campaign for an individual whose name he does not know and who is not an Israeli or Jewish and that he had only met him once.  He says Basile initially contacted him.  Klein says that the film “was designed to stop the Muslim population in America reaching 10 per cent as they would then ‘work together and attack their host country’. Our intent is to show people what America could look like in 50 to 75 years time. The truth is that Muslims are a violent people and they are taking the living with them over a cliff.’”  Klein now claims that “the film was paid for by ‘Middle Easterners, Jewish people, Christians and a lot of former Muslims’”. Some money came from Britain, Scotland, France, Germany and Holland,’ he said.   Klein said that through a group that he had founded, called Middle Eastern Experts’ Team (MEET) “and his contacts with the Coptic community he has been asked to give his insights to the FBI and the U.S. Marine Corps.”  Klein produces a television show called “Wake Up America” on The Way TV, which shares the same Duarte address asMedia for Christ headed by Joseph Nasralla Abdelmasih.  Klein posts regularly onPamela Geller’s Atlas Shrugs, In July 2011, Robert Spencer’s website, Jihad Watch, promoted a rally Klein organized alongside the anti-Muslim Coptic extremist Joseph Nasrallah to demand the firing of LA County Sheriff Lee Baca, whom they painted as a dupe for Hamas.  He is a board member and founder of a group called Courageous Christians United, whichpromotes anti-Mormon, anti-Catholic and anti-Muslim literature (including the work of Robert Spencer) on its website.  He is affiliated with the Church at Kaweah which has been profiled by the SPLC including reference to Klein’s long record of activism against Muslims.  Klein was involved in the protests against the Temecula mosque.  Klein appears to be allied with the National American Coptic Assembly, a radical Islamophobic group headed by Morris Sadik.  Klein says that he “inspired Basile” to make the film and said after the attacks in Libya “We went into this knowing this was probably going to happen.”  SOURCES: - ** - ** - ** -**  -  **  - ** - **

Nakoula Basseley Nakoula is an American Egyptian Copt.  His cell phone traces to the same address as the cell phone number used by the mysterious Sam Basile.   Nakoula claims that he was manager for the company that produced the video, and provided logistics for the film, but that he was not the producer.  Nakoula admits a role in the production of the film, and says that “it was intended as a provocative statement”. He denies being Basile, but says that he knows Sam Basile who is the filmmaker. Nakoula has convictions for drug possession and fraud, and is an ex-convict on probation.  He faces possible arrest for breaching the conditions of his parole (using the internet, computers, or email without approval of a probation officer for five years).  He is now being identified as the producer of the film.  SOURCES: - ** - ** - ** - ** - ** - ** -** - **

Morris Sadek is an American Egyptian Copt.  Sadek was the source of the telephone number supposedly belonging to Sam Basile that was given to AP, and which they called for their interview.  Sadek was also the one who translated the film into Arabic, posted Arabic articles online drawing attention to the film, sent a link to the film to Egyptian journalists, and promoted the film heavily on his website and in social media. Coptic Solidarity organization officials have condemned Sadek’s anti-Muslim activities.  Sadek was banned from entering Egypt and had his citizenship revoked in May 2011 because he called for war against the country.  SOURCES: - ** - ** -  **

Joseph Nasralla Abdelmasih, an Egyptian American Coptic Christian, is the head of Media for Christ who produced the film.  He spoke at Pamela Geller & Robert Spencer’s hate group SIOA’s anti-mosque rally in 2010 (also attended by Morris Sadek) and at their Freedom Rally in 2011.  In June 2012, Geller and Spencer held what they variously called AFDI/SIOA Historic Human Rights Townhall or AFDI/SIOA “Summer Night for Human Rights”, and which I called an anti-Muslim hate fest.  Joseph Nasrallah and Eric Allen Bell attended this function which included many former Muslim speakers.  In her articles, Geller includes a photo of herself and Nasrallah, and a photo of Eric Allen Bell sitting in the audience.  He participated with Steve Klein and Gary Cass in an anti-Muslim student outreach effort titled 911 Defend Our Students.   Gellersaid about Nasralla: Joseph Nasralla spoke at our 911 Ground Zero mosque rallies. He is a champion of human rights. SOURCES:  - ** -  ** - ** - ** - **

MEDIA FOR CHRIST -  A non-profit non-denominational Evangelical Christian organization. Obtained the permit to film “Innocence of Muslims”.  It’s founder isJoseph Nasralla Abdelmasih.  Their website is currently offline.  Their income from 65,000 dollars in 2007 to over one million dollars in 2011 according to 990 tax forms.  The other officers of Media for Christ are Kamal Rizk and Rania Mossad.  Media for Christ includes a production house for “The Way,” a Christian satellite television program in English and Arabic launched in 2010 which produces a show hosted bySteve Klein called “Wake Up America.”.  NOTE:  Media for Christ website is NOT mediaforchrist.org  SOURCES:  - ** - ** - ** - ** - **

Update:  FOLLOW THE MONEY,  Form 990 Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax are available on the National Center for Charitable Statistics site in PDF format.  Here is what I found for Media for Christ/ The Way TV:

—2005 - Shows no income, only 8,719 in money contributed personally to to set up the organization and 15,543 in expenses leaving a shortage of -6,824 for the year
— 2006 - income 64,164 - salaries 0 - other expenses 63,811 - loss of -6,471 for the year
— 2007 - income 65,861 - salaries 0 - other expenses 61,963 - loss of -2,573 for the year
— 2008 - income 46,248 - salaries 0 - other expenses 47,127 - loss of -879 for the year
— 2009 - 195,396 income - 24,263 salaries - other expenses 170,186 - loss of -22,485 for the year
— 2010 - $633,516 income - 138,638 salaries - 499,649 other expenses - loss of -11,863 for the year
— 2011 - $1,016 income -  $165,785 in salaries - 826,451 other expenses - ahead +23,551 for the year

Clearly something major happened in 2010.  Suddenly, income increased dramatically, and salaries went from 24,000 to 138,000 a year.  Then in 2011, there was another dramatic jump.  Income increased dramatically again, ans did salaries and expenses.  What happened?

Alan Roberts may or may not be a pseudonym. But focus has shifted to Roberts after Nakoula — presumably the same person as Sam Bacile — refused to admit he was the director. Gawker interviewed Eric Moers, hired as a grip and electrician for the Desert Warrior film, who laid out the on-set politics: “Alan was working under Sam, sort of,” he said. “But Alan was directing the movie, there was no question about it.” Both Moers and Dax described the film’s director as a 50ish white male, and a search of IMDB yields one Alan Roberts fitting the billing. According to the site, Roberts has directed nine films, most recently the 1994 B-movie Save Me. VICE has traced the Alan Roberts name to a man named Robert Brownell, whom they say purchased pre-production services related to the Desert Warrior film in 2009 and 2011. According to their records, Robert Brownell also goes by the name Robert Alan Brown, which contains unmistakable similarities to the Alan Roberts identity.  But the biggest problem to Moers wasn’t the director’s name, it was his skill: “He was a directorial hack, he didn’t know basic things,” Moer said.  His previous films were primarily soft pornography.  SOURCES: - ** - **

Other names have been raised in connection with the film, but at this point little is known, including whether or not some names are also pseudonyms. 

These individuals have connections with each other and with members of the Islamophobia industry.  The Islamophobia Industry exists and is engaged in an anti-MuslimCrusade.  They have a manifesto for spreading their propaganda. They produce anti-Muslim films.  They are forming new organizations and coalitions of organizations at a dizzying speed, not only nationally, but also internationally.   They have formed an International Leadership Team “which will function as a mobile, proactive, reactive on-the-ground team developing and executing confidential action plans that strike at the heart of the global anti-freedom agenda.”

The Islamophobia of these folks is very real, it is also strikingly similar to a previous generations’ anti-Semitism, and it has predictable consequences.
   

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