The Sun is convinced it has a ‘scoop’ on Corbyn… Whoops.

The Sun is convinced it has a ‘scoop’ on Jeremy Corbyn. But people are ridiculing the tabloid for attacking the Labour leader over an ‘enemy state’ that doesn’t even exist.

Front page news? Apparently.

The Sun has essentially claimed that Corbyn was once in cahoots with Czechoslovakia, which hasn’t existed for over 25 years:

The so-called evidence is that the MP for Islington met a Czech diplomat in the House of Commons in 1986. In fact, The Sun‘s ‘revelations’ boiled down to so little that people flipped the story on its head:

My favourite 'revelations' from the Czech file story on Corbyn in The Scum:

Corbyn "drinks tea".
Corbyn "owns dogs and fish".
Corbyn is "reserved and courteous".
Corbyn is "explosive, though calm and collected, in his defense of human rights".

— Matt Thomas (@Trickyjabs) February 15, 2018

A Czech assessment of Corbyn apparently notes that he “owns dogs and fish” and that his “behaviour is reserved and courteous, however, occasionally explosive (when speaking in defence of human rights), though the performance is calm and collected”. That’ll really hit the Labour leader in the ballot box.

One Twitter user was particularly unforgiving, quoting another ‘scoop’ in the Sun article:

Earth shattering news in The Sun this morning: In the 1980s Jeremy Corbyn was “negative towards the USA, as well as the politics of the Conservative government.” Read all about it in the tainted pages of the rancid, black-hearted Tory rag that taps the phones of murder victims.

— Rob Crute (@BlackhallRob) February 15, 2018

Another called for a boycott:

https://twitter.com/WilliamPMack/status/964058529383550976

Implying Corbyn was some kind of double agent…

While there are positive quotes about Corbyn’s character, there is nothing of substance in the article to back up a serious claim from The Sun. Without corresponding evidence, The Sun says Corbyn “passed on material” to a Czechoslovakian spy. Czechoslovakia was allied with the Soviet Union at the time. A spokesperson for the Labour leader strongly denied the suggestion:

The claim that Jeremy Corbyn was an agent, asset or informer for any intelligence agency is entirely false and a ridiculous smear. Like other MPs, Jeremy has met diplomats from many countries. In the 1980s he met a Czech diplomat… for a cup of tea in the House of Commons. Jeremy neither had nor offered any privileged information to this or any other diplomat.

In fact, the evidence The Sun does provide in no way chimes with the accusations. A Czech report within the article states that Corbyn’s “knowledge could not be utilised for the purposes of information as they were limited to a general nature”. In other words, the report actually backs up the Labour leader’s statement that he had not “offered any privileged information” to the diplomat.

Despite the money and resources of Rupert Murdoch, The Sun had to dig over 30 years into the past to find something to spin against Corbyn. Unfortunately for The Sun, this barrel-scraping only reinforces the Labour leader’s long record of conviction.

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Featured image via David Mirzoeff