Aaron Klein and Rusty Humphries with members of the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades in 2005.^[1]

Aaron Klein is an American journalist and author. He is a Middle East correspondent and head of the Jerusalem bureau for WorldNetDaily^[2][3] and a columnist for The Jewish Press. His WND articles have been republished on Ynetnews and in The New York Sun.^[4] Klein is a frequent guest on cable news and has regular segments and commentary on U.S. talk radio programs.^{[citation needed]}

Interviews

Aaron Klein has interviewed many Middle East newsmakers, including government officials and terrorist leaders. His first interview with terrorists was in 1999 when, at age nineteen, he spent time with members of Al-Muhajiroun, a group reportedly connected to al-Qaeda. His article about the experience,^[5] "My Weekend with the Enemy," was published in The Jerusalem Post.

Radio

Klein routinely serves as a co-host of WABC Radio's John Batchelor Show. He appears frequently on the Savage Nation, Mancow in the Morning, Michael Reagan Show, Gordon Liddy Show and Rusty Humphries Show, among others.

In December 2005, Klein was denied a journalist visa to broadcast with ABC Radio in Syria.^[6] Officials from Syria's embassies in Washington, D.C. and Amman, Jordan were quoted as saying the reason was Klein is Jewish.^[7] Some leaders in Lebanon, including Druze leader Walid Jumblatt and parliamentarian and former Prime Minister Michel Aoun, criticized Syria for its refusal to admit Klein.^[8]

In June, 2007, after an argument over whether Hamas is a terrorist organization, British politician George Galloway evicted Klein and Humphries from his office and turned them over to Parliament police, claiming the two had breached security by falsely presenting themselves as reporters. ^[9] The event was recorded on audio tape, excerpts of which were played on Fox News Channel's Hannity's America.^[10]

Book

Klein's book,^[11][12][13] based on his interviews with terrorists, was released in September 2007 with the title, Schmoozing With Terrorists: From Hollywood to the Holy Land, Jihadists Reveal their Global Plans - to a Jew!

Chapters of the book reportedly include Klein's described meetings with a recruited Palestinian suicide bomber; confrontations with the alleged Muslim desecrators of Jewish and Christian holy sites; a section in which terror leaders are petitioned to describe what life in the U.S. would be like under the rule of Islam; a chapter on Christian persecution in the Middle East; and a chapter claiming the U.S. funds terrorism.^[14]

Student career

Klein is a graduate of Torah Academy Boys High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania where he edited The T.A. Times, the school's monthly newspaper. After high school, he enrolled at the University of Pennsylvania, later transferring to Yeshiva University in New York City, where he edited the undergraduate bimonthly student newspaper, The Commentator.

Some of Klein's critical investigative pieces for The Commentator provoked retaliation by the school administration.^[15] In December 1999, The New York Times reported that issues of the student newspaper had repeatedly been removed from the campus at the administration's behest during Klein's tenure as editor-in-chief, prompting Klein to threaten to sue the University. The conflict attracted additional media attention. Yeshiva University later signed a contract in which it agreed to discontinue the practice and reimburse The Commentator for the confiscated issues.^[16]

References