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Hasan Piker: How an Israel-Hating, Terror Supporting Streamer Seduced The New York Times
The New York Times building in New York City. Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Hasan Piker is among the most popular personalities on the gaming-video streaming platform Twitch.
Piker — whose significant career break came conveniently via his uncle, Cenk Uygur, founder of the left-wing commentary show The Young Turks — brands himself as a “political commentator.” Over 2.5 million viewers regularly tune in, though it’s unlikely they’re seeking nuanced political insight. After all, Piker’s brand of “commentary” has included dismissing Hamas’ documented atrocities from October 7, praising Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah as “a pretty brilliant person,” and even laughing during Hamas’ gruesome display when releasing the bodies of the Bibas family.
Yet none of these disturbing actions have deterred mainstream media outlets like The New York Times from publishing an inexplicably flattering profile of Piker. Remarkably, the article spends more words lauding his gender-bending fashion sense, fitness regimen, and “handsome” appearance than critically examining his troubling ideological views.
Titled “A Progressive Mind in a Body Made for the ‘Manosphere’,” the article enthusiastically proclaims in its subheading: “Hasan Piker pumps iron, likes weapons, and wears pearls. His brand of masculinity has won him many fans online — and has been a useful vehicle for his politics.”
Indeed, the NY Times appears genuinely captivated, initially depicting Piker as a provocative renegade who appeals to a legion of young male followers entrenched in the so-called “manosphere” — a digital subculture known for hyper-masculine content:
Hasan Piker thinks being a man is simple.
Like many successful internet personalities targeting a generation of young men, Mr. Piker, a 33-year-old Twitch and YouTube streamer, embraces a typical ‘bro’ persona: he likes weapons, inhales supplements, uses nicotine pouches, and endlessly debates the legacy of LeBron James. Yet unlike many contemporaries, Piker—an avowed socialist—is equally comfortable donning French maid drag as playing basketball.
The first hints of Piker’s troubling views surface subtly, with the article merely stating he “criticizes … the Israeli government,” juxtaposed oddly alongside his support for organized labor, universal healthcare, and LGBTQ rights.
It’s only midway through — after considerable focus on Piker’s fitness routines and intermittent fasting diet consisting of “precisely chicken breast with low-carb pita, mezze, and sauces” — that the Times bothers to hint at what this “criticism” entails:
A vocal critic of U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East, Mr. Piker has been labeled anti-American across the political spectrum for saying the U.S. ‘deserved’ the September 11 attacks. His recent accusations that Israel is committing ‘genocide’ in Gaza and his diatribes against the Zionist movement have led supporters of Israel, including liberals like Representative Ritchie Torres of New York, to call Mr. Piker antisemitic.
Predictably, the Times immediately offers Piker a convenient rebuttal: “I find antisemitism to be completely unacceptable,” along with his disingenuous claim that “I find the conflation of antisemitism and anti-Zionism to be very dangerous.”
Yet the Times is evidently aware of Piker’s Jewish and Israeli problems — initially publishing a photo of his “bulking” chicken meal consumed in his studio, inadvertently showing a viewer comment on Piker’s Twitch stream stating in block capitals: “I’D F*** THIS IDF BITCH TO DEATH.”
In writer Jack Crosbie’s rush to flatter Piker, it seems he didn’t bother examining the photos closely. And in typical New York Times fashion, the image was quietly edited later to crop out the damning viewer comments, leaving only the innocuous chicken meal behind.
And yet, the Times’s profile of Piker is merely the latest example from an outlet seemingly intent on rebranding Palestinian extremists as progressive. Just weeks ago, the paper dedicated its opinion page to an impassioned defense of the Oscar-winning joint Israeli-Palestinian documentary No Other Land, which HonestReporting had criticized for misrepresenting facts on the ground.
While the essay argued for a so-called joint “co-resistance” between Israelis and Palestinians, we revealed how one of the writers had a starkly different interpretation of “resistance” on October 7. That day, as Hamas terrorists, aided by Gazan civilians, invaded Israel, massacred over 1,200 people, and took 251 hostages back to Gaza, the writer shared footage of terrorists paragliding into Israel and opening fire, accompanied by a text overlay likening them to Jews smuggling weapons into Nazi ghettos during the Holocaust.
Hasan Piker isn’t merely another controversial figure pushing boundaries — he’s emblematic of a deeply troubling trend: the glamorization of extremism through superficial charm and savvy branding. And, disturbingly, The New York Times is leading the way.
The author is a contributor to HonestReporting, a Jerusalem-based media watchdog with a focus on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias — where a version of this article first appeared.
The post Hasan Piker: How an Israel-Hating, Terror Supporting Streamer Seduced The New York Times first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel Says It Would Reduce Troops in Lebanon if Beirut Takes Steps to Disarm Hezbollah
An Israeli tank is positioned on the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, March 18, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Avi Ohayon
Israel on Monday signaled it would scale back its military presence in southern Lebanon if the Lebanese armed forces took action to disarm Iran-backed Shi’ite terrorist group Hezbollah.
The announcement from the Israeli prime minister’s office came a day after Benjamin Netanyahu met with US envoy Tom Barrack, who has been heavily involved in a plan that would disarm Hezbollah and withdraw Israeli forces from Lebanon.
“If the Lebanese Armed Forces take the necessary steps to implement the disarmament of Hezbollah, Israel will engage in reciprocal measures, including a phased reduction” by the Israeli military, the Israeli prime minister’s office said.
The statement did not explicitly say if Israeli forces would fully withdraw from the five positions they hold in Lebanon.
The Israeli military has maintained a presence in southern Lebanon near the border since agreeing to a United States-backed ceasefire with Hezbollah in November.
Israel was to withdraw its forces within two months and Lebanon‘s armed forces were to take control of the country’s south, territory that has long been a stronghold for Hezbollah.
This month, Lebanon‘s cabinet tasked the army with drawing up a plan to establish state control over arms by December, a challenge to Hezbollah, which has rejected calls to disarm.
The prime minister’s office described the Lebanese cabinet’s decision to back the move as a momentous decision. Israel stood “ready to support Lebanon in its efforts to disarm Hezbollah,” the statement said without saying what support it could provide.
Barrack, the US ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria, has said Israel should comply with the plan for Hezbollah disarmament, which would mean the withdrawal of Israeli forces.
The Israeli military continues to carry out periodic air strikes in Lebanon that it said targeted Hezbollah terrorists and facilities used by the Islamist group to store weapons.
Palestinian factions in Lebanon surrendered some weapons to the armed forces last week as part of the disarmament plan.
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Syria Says Israel Takes Some Territory Around Mount Hermon Despite Talks
Israeli forces operate at a location given as Mount Hermon region, Syria, in this handout image released Dec. 9, 2024. Photo: Israel Defense Forces/Handout via REUTERS
Syria said on Monday that Israel had sent 60 soldiers to take control of an area inside the Syrian border around Mount Hermon, saying the operation violated its sovereignty and posed a further threat to regional security.
Israel did not immediately comment on the accusation by Syria‘s foreign ministry, which comes as the two countries engage in US-mediated talks on de-escalating their conflict in southern Syria. Damascus hopes to reach a security arrangement that could eventually pave the way for broader political talks.
Monday’s incident took place near a strategic hilltop that overlooks Beit Jinn, an area of southern Syria close to the border with Lebanon, the ministry said. Israel also arrested six Syrians there, according to residents in the area.
The area is known for arms smuggling by Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah terrorist group and by Palestinian jihadist factions. Previous Israeli incursions have mostly been in the southern Quneitra governorate.
The Israeli military on Sunday shared footage of what it said were troops locating weapons storage facilities last week in southern Syria.
“This dangerous escalation is considered a direct threat to regional peace and security,” the Syrian foreign ministry said in a statement.
Israel has cited its own security concerns for its military interventions inside Syria since the fall of Bashar al-Assad last December, including what it sees as its obligation to protect members of the Druze minority in southern Syria.
Hundreds of people were reported killed in clashes last month in the southern province of Sweida between Druze fighters, Sunni Bedouin tribes and government forces. Israel intervened with airstrikes to prevent what it said was mass killings of Druze by the Syrian government forces.
In January, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israeli troops would remain on the summit of Mount Hermon indefinitely.
Israel has since then formed a de facto security zone, where it regularly patrols, sets up checkpoints, and carries out searches and raids in villages.
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Widespread Anti-Israel Protests Held in Australia
Demonstrators hold a placard as they take part in the ‘Nationwide March for Palestine’ protest in Sydney, Australia, Aug. 24, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Hollie Adams
Thousands of Australians joined anti-Israel rallies on Sunday, organizers said, amid strained relations between Israel and Australia following the center-left government’s decision to recognize a Palestinian state.
More than 40 protests took place across Australia on Sunday, Palestine Action Group said, including large turnouts in state capitals Sydney, Brisbane, and Melbourne. The group said around 350,000 attended the rallies nationwide, including around 50,000 in Brisbane, though police estimated the numbers there at closer to 10,000. Police did not have estimates for crowd sizes in Sydney and Melbourne.
In Sydney, organizer Josh Lees said Australians were out in force to “demand an end to this genocide in Gaza and to demand that our government sanction Israel” as rallygoers, many with Palestinian flags, chanted “free, free Palestine.”
Alex Ryvchin, co-CEO of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, an umbrella group for more than 200 Jewish organizations, told Sky News television that the rallies created “an unsafe environment and shouldn’t be happening.”
The protests follow Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this week stepping up his personal attacks on his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese over his government’s decision this month to recognize a Palestinian state.
Diplomatic ties between Australia and Israel soured after Albanese’s Labor government said it would conditionally recognize Palestinian statehood, following similar moves by France, Britain, and Canada.
The Aug. 11 announcement came days after tens of thousands of people marched across Sydney’s iconic Harbour Bridge, calling for peace and aid deliveries to Gaza, where Israel began an offensive nearly two years ago after the Hamas terrorist group launched a deadly cross-border attack.