CNN is facing tough questions after airing a dramatic report from Syria that seems to have gone horribly wrong. What started as a touching story of a journalist freeing a prisoner has now taken a dark and surprising turn.
Last week, CNN aired a video of their reporter, Clarissa Ward, entering what they called a “secret prison” in Damascus. The report was part of their search for missing U.S. journalist Austin Tice, who disappeared during the Syrian conflict. In the footage, Ward walks through the dark facility with an armed escort, searching cell by cell. She eventually finds a locked door. Inside? A man huddled under a blanket.
The man, who introduced himself as Adel Ghurbal, thanked Ward for freeing him. He kissed her hand in gratitude and claimed he had been wrongly imprisoned by the Syrian government. According to him, he was a regular civilian arrested and interrogated over the contents of his phone. His emotional story of being jailed for three months struck a chord with viewers.
But things didn’t stay heartwarming for long.
Just days later, a Syrian investigative site called Verify-sy published a bombshell report. They alleged that Adel Ghurbal wasn’t who he said he was. According to their findings, the man’s real name is Salama Mohammad Salama, also known as Abu Hamza. And far from being an innocent civilian, Salama was reportedly a first lieutenant in Syria’s Air Force Intelligence.
This is where the story takes a sinister turn. Local sources claimed Salama was in charge of multiple security checkpoints in Homs, a city ravaged during the Syrian war. His alleged crimes include theft, extortion, and forcing people to spy for the government. Worse still, he was reportedly involved in military operations where civilians were killed. He also allegedly detained and tortured young men on fake charges.
So why was Salama in prison? Not for his alleged crimes against civilians, the report claims. Instead, he was jailed after a falling out with a higher-ranking officer over how to split money extorted from locals.
Adding to the doubts, Verify-sy shared an old photo of Salama in a military uniform, sitting comfortably in his office. They also pointed out how he appeared unusually well-groomed and healthy in CNN’s video—hardly the look of someone who had endured months of brutal prison conditions.
The backlash forced CNN to respond. The network admitted that after their own investigation, the man indeed appeared to have ties to Syrian intelligence and had been accused of extortion. However, CNN said it’s still unclear why Salama ended up in that particular prison. They also noted that his current whereabouts are unknown, as they’ve been unable to contact him since the video aired.
Now, questions are swirling. Did CNN fall for a clever deception, unknowingly portraying a notorious figure as a victim? Or was the network careless in verifying its story before broadcasting it to millions? Some critics are accusing CNN of trying to rehabilitate Salama’s image, while others think they were simply misled.
Either way, the story has left a bitter taste, turning what was meant to be an emotional moment into a controversial mess.
