An Egyptian TV channel recently claimed that an episode from "The Simpsons" was proof that the war in Syria and the Arab Spring revolutions were an American conspiracy. Showing footage from an episode of the 2001 season of the American animated sitcom, the TV anchor pointed to a picture of a flag painted on the side of a jeep. Claiming that this was the Syrian opposition flag, she said that its depiction in a 2001 episode of the American series was proof that the war in Syria is part of a global American conspiracy.
Following are excerpts from the report, which aired on Al-Tahrir TV on May 4, 2014.
Click here to view this clip on MEMRI TV
TV anchor: "The video you are about to see shows animated figures dancing, flying airplanes, and dropping bombs on what must be Syria, because there are other animated figures below in Arab garb, and the Syrian [opposition] flag appears on one of the vehicles. Let’s take a look at the video, which suggests that what is happening in Syria today was premeditated.
"How it reached this animated video nobody knows, and this has aroused a debate on the social networks. Let’s watch it together."
Footage from an episode from "The Simpsons" season 12
TV anchor: "The flag that appeared on the vehicle on which the bombs were dropped is the flag of the Syrian opposition. This is from 2001 – before there was such a thing called the "Syrian opposition." The flag was created before the events took place. That’s why people are saying on Facebook that this is a conspiracy. In 2001, there was no such thing as the flag of the Syrian opposition.
"This episode was created back in 2001, before the Syrian opposition even existed. Here is the flag. The scene you see here shows animated figures in Arab garb.
"This raises many question marks about what happened in the Arab Spring revolutions and about when this global conspiracy began." […]
