A marketing guru who was behind the rebrand of the BBC’s Arabic and Persian channels ran an anti-Israel online shop that glorified terrorists and promoted Holocaust denial.
Muhammad Karim, a self-described “marketing professional and entrepreneur”, who until recently worked for the British branch of the UN children's agency, Unicef, operated Solid Mujahid, an antizionist clothing brand.
Per his personal website, Karim also worked for the BBC, where he “rebranded the Arabic and Persian channels, boosting engagement and viewership”, and Turkish state-owned broadcaster TRT World.
One of the T-shirts sold by Solid Mujahid (GnasherJew)[Missing Credit]
According to evidence released by advocacy group GnasherJew, Solid Mujahid sold T-shirts bearing the names of several high-profile Palestinian militants, including the late Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar and PFLP hijacker Leila Khaled, as well as other prominent Muslim historical figures, such as Malcom X and Saladin, the commander of the Muslim armies against the Third Crusade.
Promoting the shirt on social media, the brand described those listed as “champions of truth” who “stood unwavering in the face of injustice”.
Other products included the inverted red triangle symbol, commonly used by Hamas to mark IDF targets, including a T-shirt that featured the shape and the slogan “punch a Zionist”.
Meanwhile, screenshots released by GnasherJew show the brand’s X account made a post on the first anniversary of the October 7 attack featuring the triangle, which read: “I fully support armed resistance against occupying forces of oppression and genocide.”
An image reposted by the Solid Mujahid account (GnasherJew)[Missing Credit]
The account also retweeted posts that promoted Holocaust denial, including two citing a contemporaneous Red Cross figure suggesting that 271,000 Jews, rather than six million, had been murdered by the Nazis.
This figure, often promoted by Holocaust deniers, stems from a 1979 document produced by the Arolsen Archives, which were administered by the Red Cross.
However, the archive itself has clarified that it only refers to the number of Jews who were confirmed dead and issued a death certificate, often needed by family members to claim compensation or bereavement benefits, at 13 concentration camps.
It does not include the millions who died at other concentration and extermination camps, in ghettos, or those who died at the camps studied but who could not be identified or had not had their death certificates confirmed.
Following the publication of the investigation on August 9, Unicef confirmed it had taken “immediate action” regarding Karim.
Karim also updated his LinkedIn to say that his employment with Unicef UK ended this month.
A post on the Solid Mujahid account (GnasherJew)[Missing Credit]
A Unicef spokesperson told the JC: “The individual referenced no longer works at Unicef UK. We are unable to comment further on individual employment matters.
“Unicef UK does not tolerate behaviour that is inconsistent with our organisational values, policies and Code of Conduct.
“Any breach of these standards will be addressed immediately and appropriately, in line with our policies and legal and regulatory requirements.”
A BBC spokesperson said the corporation had no comment, except that Karim “left the BBC over ten years ago”.
When contacted by the JC over the telephone, Karim hung up before a request for comment could be made, but confirmed his identity and role as a marketing manager for Unicef UK. He did not respond to further requests for comment by email.
To get more Israel news, click here to sign up for our free Israel Briefing newsletter.
