Qatari Officials Harass World Cup Reporter, Threaten To Smash TV Camera, Meekly Apologize
Getty Image / Sidhik Keerantakath / Eyepix Group / Future Publishing
The 2022 World Cup in Qatar is off and running like a man sitting on the toilet who just heard the ice cream truck and started running before he could get his pants pulled up. This World Cup in Qatar is going to be an absolute mess. It’s not a matter if things go bad it’s just a matter of how horribly things devolve in the coming days.
The first public incident in Qatar has ended with a meek apology from Qatari officials. A Danish World Cup reporter was filming on the street when he was harassed by local officials who threatened to smash his TV camera all for doing his job that he received a work visa to be there to do.
Video footage of Danish TV World Cup reporter Rasmus Tantholdt has since gone viral. It’s unreal to see him being harassed on the street like this when he’s there to report on the biggest global sporting event on earth AND THE QATARIS KNOW THIS but are still threatening him:
We now got an apology from Qatar International Media Office and from Qatar Supreme Commitee.
This is what happened when we were broadcasting live for @tv2nyhederne from a roundabout today in Doha. But will it happen to other media as well? #FIFAWorldCupQatar2022 pic.twitter.com/NSJj50kLql— Rasmus Tantholdt TV2 (@RasmusTantholdt) November 15, 2022
Reporter Rasmus Tantholdt is seen asking these harassers “You have invited the whole world here. Why can’t we film? It is a public place.” Then after showing his credentials, the proof that he was allowed to be there filming, they threatened him. Rasmu responded with “you can break the camera. You want to break it? You are threatening us by smashing the camera?”
After footage of the Qataris threatening and harassing this World Cup reporter went viral, they quickly realized they needed to try and make a public apology to save face. The ‘Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy’ in Qatar released this statement:
“Upon inspection of the crew’s valid tournament accreditation and filming permit, an apology was made to the broadcaster by on-site security before the crew resumed their activity.”
I checked the TV 2 website looking for their response and couldn’t find it, but Deadline reports that TV 2 has this statement somewhere on their website in response to the Qatari aggression:
“The team was bluntly told that if they didn’t stop filming, their cameras would be destroyed. This is despite the fact that TV2’s team has acquired the correct accreditations and reported from a public place.”
Everything leading up to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar suggests this will not be an isolated incident. As the country fills up with tens of thousands of reporters and millions of fans, the flood of news coming out of Qatar will be overwhelming. I hope I’m wrong but even the former FIFA President who is as corrupt as any global official is calling the choice of Qatar a mistake.
Two of the biggest voices in soccer absolutely torched the upcoming #WorldCup in Qatar.https://t.co/4BN8VvJwgs
— BroBible (@BroBible) November 2, 2022
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Cass Anderson, Khareem Sudlow
