It has come to our attention that Victor J. Willi, a UK-based academic, has published a book titled “The Fourth Ordeal” in which he alleges that GIOR Senior Editor Steven Merley is somehow associated with US far-right ideologues Frank Gaffney, Pamela Gellar, and Robert Spencer. This claim is scurrilous and entirely false. Mr. Merley has never had any association of any kind with these individuals. In fact, Mr. Merley has a long record of opposing extremism of all kinds and has strongly criticized Mr. Gaffney as well as the rightwing ideologues with whom he is associated. Mr. Merley has also publicly labeled Gellar and Spencer as “anti-Islamic bloggers” and referred to their extremist ideology. As renowned British journalist John Ware, formerly with the BBC, has written:
Just as the US Justice Department and FBI take Merley’s work seriously, we should too. He is no ideologue and is as troubled by right-wing groups demonising ordinary Muslims today as he is by the Brotherhood itself.
Legal action against the author and the publisher is under consideration.
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