How Canada Helped Fund a Covert Propaganda Campaign in the Middle East
Editor’s note, December 17, 2024:
The recent ousting of Bashar al-Assad marks a profound shift in Syria’s political landscape. As power reshuffles and uncertainty looms, this development casts a renewed spotlight on the role of foreign interventions throughout the conflict.
Canada’s funding of covert media operations, aimed at shaping narratives in Syria under the guise of support for “moderate opposition,” raises serious questions about taxpayer-backed initiatives tied to broader international efforts.
This report, first published in March 2024, is worth revisiting to better understand these issues and their implications.
For years, the Government of Canada funded organizations at the forefront of developing a sophisticated propaganda system targeting the Middle East — a campaign that was meticulously designed to cultivate support for Syria’s armed opposition, including efforts to "soften" the image of militias opposed to Bashar al-Assad, as revealed by leaked documents.
This underscores the ethical implications of using taxpayer money, whether intentional or not, to fund foreign propaganda efforts, highlighting the interplay between foreign aid initiatives and the shaping of international public opinion.
In 2020, a shadowy hacking collective released a plethora of documents, shedding light on a covert project led predominantly by the British government. This project aimed to craft a pro-opposition narrative surrounding the Syrian civil war, a narrative that subsequently influenced the majority of Western media coverage of the conflict.
These documents exposed how Western intelligence cutouts manipulated both English and Arabic language media outlets. They trained, supported, and mentored Syrian media activists aligned with the “United Kingdom's vision and values for a future Syria.”
The documents, comprising hundreds of the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) files, detailed Syria propaganda operations, revealing that while all named firms were contracted by the British government, many also ran “multi-donor projects” funded by the United States and other Western European countries.
As a main recipient of Canadian funding among the organizations named in the leaked documents, ARK Group DMCC, a consulting firm based in the United Arab Emirates, piqued Coastal Front's interest. A probe into the organization reveals that the firm, particularly its Chief Executive Officer, siphoned millions from Canadian taxpayers through a multitude of avenues.
Canada’s funding, in this case, is one strand in the broader web of Western efforts, led by the UK, illustrating how “foreign aid” contributed to the crafting and propagation of shaped narratives.
Breach confirmed
In September 2020, Ian Cobain of the Middle East Eye confirmed that hackers had penetrated the computer systems of the UK's FCDO, exposing hundreds of documents. These documents shed light on Britain's covert propaganda operations in Syria during its civil war and Canada's financial backing of these efforts, unveiling the FCDO's partnership with “private contractors” to sway Syrian public opinion against the Assad regime and Daesh through “strategic communications.” This effort involved the production and distribution of carefully curated media content — ranging from radio broadcasts to digital media — to bolster support for what ARK and Western governments dubbed the "moderate opposition."
The breach came to light when some documents were published online, triggering an internal alert within the FCDO and leading to briefings for top officials, including Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, reports Cobain. The cyberattack ironically raised alarm over a potential state-sponsored operation, with British officials casting unsubstantiated suspicions toward Russian intelligence.
When Coastal Front sought a comment from the FCDO, the office was evasive, initially inquiring about our interest before ultimately declining to provide any statement.
Canadians rinsed by foreign intelligence contractors
While not directly named in Cobain’s report, ARK Group DMCC — previously ARK FZC and ARK Group — was extensively detailed in the leaked documents. For reasons not clearly articulated, Global Affairs Canada (GAC) has invested millions of dollars into ARK over the past decade. This funding notably supported the UK-led propaganda campaign in Syria which, according to an internal UK government review reported by the Middle East Eye, may have violated UK laws. This raises the possibility that GAC unwittingly financed an unlawful operation.
Further, documents reviewed by the Guardian in 2016 describe entities that the UK government labelled as “moderate armed opposition.” Among these groups is Jaysh al-Islam, an amalgam of Islamist factions near Damascus, largely financed by Saudi Arabia. Human Rights Watch has pointed to Jaysh al-Islam as the probable abductors of four activists in December 2013, known as the “Douma Four,” presumed to have been killed. Furthermore, Jaysh al-Islam has faced condemnation for circulating a video showing the execution of 18 captured ISIS fighters, a war crime under the Geneva Convention. Additionally, there have been reports of Jaysh al-Islam’s former leader, the deceased Zahran Alloush’s forces displaying al-Qaeda’s black flag.
Zahran Alloush, Jaysh al-Islam’s former leader
Jaysh al-Islam graduation ceremony, 2015
Jaysh al-Islam graduation ceremony, 2015
In effect, Canadian funding may have not only supported an unlawful initiative but also helped to bolster the image of groups with potential terrorist ties in order to topple Assad’s regime.
GAC disclosed to Coastal Front that its involvement with ARK in Syria was not direct but limited to financial support. The department declined to disclose specifics about the funding agreements but confirmed contributions exceeding $7 million in the last decade. GAC also remained silent on the document leaks, citing security concerns.
Despite GAC’s reticence, the leaked documents unmistakably show that with Canada’s assistance, ARK’s engineered narrative significantly influenced the portrayal of the Syrian conflict in major Western news outlets. ARK served as a funded intermediary between the UK government and the media, implicating Canadian taxpayers in the support of this endeavour. Compromised outlets include names like the New York Times, the Washington Post, CNN, Al Jazeera, and the BBC, as well as many Arabic language outlets, as shown in the leaks.
UK connection
Understanding ARK’s alignment with Western, particularly British, interests becomes clearer upon examining the background of its CEO, Alistair Harris, and his associates.
Harris, born in 1973, was involved with the UK Foreign Office as a "diplomat" between 1996 and 2002, serving in the Balkans, Central Europe, and Pakistan, according to various public profiles, including LinkedIn. He then went on to work in several government positions, including a two-year stint as a war crimes investigator for the UK government and the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia.
Alistair Harris (Image courtesy University of Cambridge)
Notably, Harris's ARK biography omits his diplomatic career, instead highlighting his two decades spent "working in conflict zones from Northern Ireland and the Balkans to Afghanistan, the West Bank, and Lebanon." The mention of Northern Ireland is noteworthy given its status as part of the UK, which typically would not station a "diplomat" within its own territories, suggesting a potential non-diplomatic role during his time there. What that role would have entailed remains unclear. Harris could not be reached for comment before publication.
Last year, The Cradle referred to Harris as a “veteran MI6 operative,” but Coastal Front could not confirm this. In 2019, however, Harris founded a “motion picture production” company called Hotch Potch Entertainment; another founder was Simon Wilson, who appeared in a Cryptome list of MI6 officers published in 1999. The British government tried unsuccessfully to prevent the list from being published online.
A few years later, in 2004, the outing of MI6 agents in the Balkans in 2004 by journalists from Croatia, Serbia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina led to a withdrawal of operatives and further illuminated the West's secretive role in NATO's efforts to destabilize and break up former Yugoslavia — a strategy seen as a model for strategies in Syria and beyond.
As previously mentioned, Harris was working for the UK foreign office from 1996-2002, and his postings included the Balkans. He then went on to “conduct war crimes investigations throughout the Former Yugoslavia,” as per his LinkedIn.
Piecing together Harris’s career and network shows an individual who is consistently and conveniently well-placed to support the UK’s international objectives. He maintains proximity to UK intelligence, yet without formal acknowledgement on public record.
The speculation surrounding Harris's involvement with MI6, whether confirmed or not, does not detract from his role in advancing Western strategies abroad. His career trajectory shows a significant capability in navigating and influencing regime change initiatives, marking him as a key figure in executing the UK's geopolitical vision. A vision which, as it turns out, Canadians help pay for.
Harris and the White Helmets
ARK, standing for Analysis, Research, and Knowledge, was established by Harris in Lebanon in 2009 with the mission to “bridge the gap between the aspirations of local communities and the priorities of governmental and multilateral actors.”
With the onset of the Arab Spring in late 2010, the Middle East was engulfed in protests. The ensuing turmoil — whether fueled by genuine domestic discontent, external instigations, or both — presented an opportune moment for Western hawks scoping the region.
Amid the charged atmosphere, in 2011, Harris registered ARK FZC in Dubai and welcomed James Le Mesurier, a former British Military Officer with UN experience in the former Yugoslavia, as a director. Le Mesurier, who later founded the White Helmets with the support of ARK in 2013, brought this self-described volunteer organization into the spotlight. Following bombardments, the White Helmets are known to rush into the rubble to search for victims. Officially called the Syria Civil Defence, the White Helmets were nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 2016 and were the subject of a Netflix documentary, which further propelled the organization into international fame, consequently increasing international support and funding.
James Le Mesurier in Istanbul (X.com)
James Le Mesurier (Image courtesy Sofie Gran Aspunvik)
However, less known is the pivotal role Harris played in catapulting the White Helmets to global prominence. Under Le Mesurier's guidance and with ARK's support, the White Helmets became a symbol of the "moderate opposition" in Syria. Le Mesurier then founded the Mayday Rescue Foundation in 2014, which became the main financial conduit for the White Helmets, closely coordinated with Harris's ARK, which continued running the White Helmets’ social media accounts. Leaked documents reveal ARK's pride in elevating the White Helmets to international acclaim, which included “high profile recognition from international websites and commentators,” as per the documents.
But, as mentioned, ARK's involvement in Syria extended beyond support for the White Helmets. It encompassed a broad campaign of psychological operations funded largely by the UK but also by Canada, among others. These efforts aimed at weakening Assad's regime by creating and circulating pro-opposition narratives globally, framing controversial armed factions as the "moderate opposition" and significantly shaping international perceptions through a carefully crafted narrative, with the White Helmets at the forefront of this campaign.
Its efforts proved fruitful. Alongside the substantial funds allocated to ARK, Global Affairs Canada also provided more than $8.7 million to the White Helmets through Le Mesurier's Mayday Rescue in 2017 and 2018. This brings GAC funding to more than $16 million between ARK and Mayday.
The multi-million subsidies from European governments, Canada, and also Qatar all went to Mayday’s bank accounts in Amsterdam.
And then came the financial concerns.
In 2018, amid growing concerns about financial transparency, European countries increased their oversight of the foundation, and the Netherlands' Ministry of Foreign Affairs discontinued its backing of Mayday Rescue due to a “problematic” payment system and transparency concerns, fearing funds might be diverted to extremist groups in Syria. The evaluation by an IOB team highlighted insufficient mechanisms for monitoring fund recipients and detecting terrorist infiltration, noting a significant lack of systematic oversight.
Individuals within the White Helmets have faced allegations of involvement in organ trafficking, torture, homicide, theft, and cooperating with oppressive militant factions. They’ve also been accused of compromising investigations carried out in Syria by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. The purveyors of these allegations, however, have routinely been dismissed by Western leaders and legacy corporate media outlets as propagandists and apologists.
Missing funds, backdated receipts, and family loans
In late 2018, while purportedly facilitating the evacuation of White Helmet volunteers from Syria, Le Mesurier withdrew US$50,000 from Mayday’s safe in Istanbul, which then went missing. This would become the focal point of several media reports. Le Mesurier reportedly instructed his office to offset the remainder of unspent money against his salary and a Mayday employee backdated receipts, supposedly accounting for what was spent.
Further, a Dutch auditor reportedly found cash book entries labelled “James for wedding” and “loan to Emma,” possibly a reference to Le Mesurier’s then-wife, Emma Winberg, who was also a foundation director and former UK diplomat. Winberg’s work for Mayday raised further concern over a potential conflict of interest.
Also, one of Le Mesurier’s ex-wives, Sarah Tosh, worked for ARK for at least four years as a Programme Director, further highlighting the intricate web of relationships underpinning these operations. Tosh, in her capacity at ARK, aimed to prop up opposition forces and shape media narratives aligning with the UK's vision for Syria, according to the leaks, which further noted that Tosh would work with the UK to “further” Canadian resources.
More on Tosh later.
Now, back to the missing funds.
While Le Mesurier took responsibility for the vanished US$50,000 intended for the White Helmets, he also raised further concerns: the former British intelligence officer noted very high salaries, cash bonuses, and unpaid taxes, according to Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant.
Despite appearing to come clean, Mayday's fate had been sealed, and a very talkative Le Mesurier offered his resignation over the scandal. Two days later, on November 11, 2019, he was found dead on the streets of Istanbul at 4:30 a.m. local time, reportedly having fallen from his balcony. His wife said they had retired to bed around 4 a.m. after taking sleeping pills. Turkish authorities concluded the death was a suicide.
Immediately after Le Mesurier’s death, European donor countries commissioned UK-headquartered accounting firm Grant Thornton to conduct a forensic inquiry into Mayday's financial activities, which eventually concluded it found “no evidence of misappropriation of funds.”
Yes, you read that right: “no evidence of misappropriation of funds.”
The accounting firm’s conclusion likely provided welcome words for the officials at Global Affairs Canada who signed off on the more than $8.7 million to Mayday in 2017 and 2018 alone.
As for Le Mesurier, three days before his death, the spokesperson of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused him of being a “former agent of Britain’s MI6.” This was promptly laughed off by Western media, as the Russian official provided no concrete evidence to support the claim.
Similarly, The Guardian previously stated that Les Mesurier was a former MI5 officer, but walked the claim back shortly after making it, noting that he only held a military intelligence post in the Balkans in 1999.
The details of Le Mesurier’s life are shadowed in complexity.
Some of those close to Le Mesurier, at least publicly, affirm that he indeed took his own life. The pressures of international scrutiny and a pervasive sense of encroachment may have seemed insurmountable, leading him to believe that his only recourse on that dark, early morning in Istanbul was to sever the thin line between life and death — a permanent off switch, so to speak. Yet, history reminds us that the fates of intelligence assets are often perilously uncertain, existing in a realm where suicide invariably carries a question mark. Regardless, his death remains a tragedy. He left behind two children.
Harris, meanwhile, kept coasting. Despite ARK’s involvement in the White Helmets’ popularity and resulting funding, Harris — who’s masterfully avoided mainstream controversy for decades — likely knew to maintain an arm’s length from Mayday, at least on the books. Besides, his multi-government-funded gravy train wasn’t set to slow down any time soon. GAC told Coastal Front it has provided ARK more than $6 million over the 2021-22 and 2023-24 fiscal years, much of which is not yet disclosed on the Open Government Portal as of publication.
Influencing ‘attitudinal and behavioural changes’
Sarah Tosh, ARK Programme Director and James Le Mesurier's former wife played a role in channeling Canadian resources into Syria. She oversaw ARK's network of "stringers," aiming to amplify the moderate opposition, dismantle regime narratives, and elevate media activists aligned with the UK's vision for Syria. In the leaked documents ARK states that such campaigns have “demonstrably resulted in both attitudinal and behavioural changes.”
ARK's influence extended to a plethora of media outlets, including radio stations and magazines with a focus on women's issues. Highlighting the strategic use of its media network, ARK emphasized the importance of "communications surges" during key moments, like International Women’s Day. Their goal was to enhance the Syrian opposition's image and challenge the Assad regime's credibility. This effort aimed to reshape perceptions of opposition groups as forward-thinking and inclusive, essentially framing the conflict in a binary of good versus evil, with the inclusive and moderate opposition forces leading the good fight. ARK also boasted of supplying such content, both branded and unbranded, to major networks like Al Jazeera and the BBC.
ARK terms this "gender programming," a trojan horse aimed at gaining Western support for regime change. Seemingly without question, the media bit — hook, line, and sinker.
While a portion of Canadian funding was directed toward gender programming, Canada also aimed to fund more tangible initiatives, like improving street lighting in opposition-held areas to presumably enhance women's safety.
For example, GAC allocated more than $1 million in 2015-2016 for “combating sexual and gender-based violence in Syria.” A program report provided to Coastal Front through an Access to Information and Privacy Request disclosed that US$270,000 was spent on installing just six street lights in Atmeh, consuming nearly a third of the program's budget.
GAC made no effort to verify whether or not all of the street lights — at US$45,000 a piece — went up and stayed up. As mentioned, GAC had no staff on the ground in Syria. The department reiterated, however, that it trusts ARK’s financial competence.
GAC’s approach to supporting women’s safety abroad appears to boil down to pouring money into a void and calling it a day.
ARK’s ‘sister company’ gets its fill
In a 2019 LinkedIn update, Harris highlighted what he called ARK’s "sister company,” The Stabilisation Network DMCC, which focuses on "research and programming to promote social cohesion and prevent and counter violent extremism around the world." This organization, by its own description, mirrors the objectives of ARK.
Also located in the UAE, The Stabilisation Network was referred to by Harris as a sibling entity to ARK, yet documentation from the UK's Companies House from 2018 identifies The Stabilisation Network as a subsidiary of ARK. Not that it matters all that much, as Harris is the CEO of both.
Sure enough, GAC gave The Stabilisation Network more than $13 million from 2017-2019.
Effectively, The Stabilisation Network served as another conduit for Harris to secure millions from Canadian coffers.
Cumulatively, Harris has siphoned approximately $30 million out of Global Affairs Canada’s pocket, with over $20 million funding his ventures — ARK and The Stabilisation Network — and laying the foundation that led to Mayday Rescue's financial support.
Despite operating under similar aims, Harris maintained a public distance from Mayday, likely due to its overzealous funding tactics. Such issues might have very well contributed to the circumstances surrounding Le Mesurier's death. However, it's important to note that this connection remains speculative.
Cavernous accountability gap
The implication of Global Affairs Canada in Syria, highlighted by funding efforts with unclear objectives and questionable outcomes, necessitates a review of Canada's foreign aid decisions. Coastal Front's investigation reveals a pattern of financial support for activities mired in legal and ethical grey areas, ranging from psychological operations and backing groups with alarming ties, to the outright mismanagement of untraceable funds.
The financial connections to Harris’s organizations, the White Helmets, and the scandal-ridden Mayday Rescue underscore GAC’s lack of oversight and due diligence. It seems that as long as an organization knows how to present itself, it can easily siphon money from the department. Harris has apparently perfected this tactic, as ARK received more funding this year, according to GAC.
Meanwhile, Canada grapples with domestic challenges: a soaring cost of living, a withering healthcare system leaving millions without access to primary care, and rising homelessness to name a few. Despite these pressing issues, Canada continues to allocate billions in foreign aid annually.
And for what?
GAC often touts ambiguous objectives like “enhancing security” in faraway countries or “fostering gender equality abroad.” Yet, to give one example, a report by Canada’s auditor general last year exposed GAC’s failure to confirm the impact of its gender equality initiatives overseas, showing a lack of effective oversight over the $3.5 billion provided annually in bilateral aid.
The auditor general’s office told Coastal Front that GAC committed to providing quarterly updates on its progress regarding the improvement of its information management but didn’t provide further details.
This scenario is all too common.
When following the money out of Canada, it's uncertain what one might find. Rarely, there's a straightforward, transparent project with clear benefits for an overseas community. More often, how funds are used remains unclear to the department itself.
Or, in the case of ARK, one finds themselves in a murky netherworld filled with foreign intelligence assets and grifters, all understanding too well that Canada is an easy mark for financial extraction.
