The BBC is said to have launched an urgent investigation into journalists believed to be “Hamas-supporting”.
Numerous BBC reporters have been accused of breaching the guidelines by the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis investigation. A senior broadcast journalist, five reporters and a freelance reporter from the BBC have been accused of showing an “anti-Israel bias” in their reporting and social media activity.
According to reports from The Sun in the UK, BBC News Arabic reporters endorsed social media posts and comments comparing the terrorist group Hamas to freedom fighters. One allegedly “liked” video was captioned “proud moment” and depicted kidnapped people and bodies loaded into a jeep. It has also been reported that the journalists referred to the Hamas attack on October 7 as a “morning of hope,”.
Those named by The Sun include senior broadcast journalist Mahmoud Sheleib, broadcast journalist Aya Hossam and correspondent Sally Nabil, among others.
“We are urgently investigating this matter. We take allegations of breaches of our editorial and social media guidelines with the utmost seriousness, and if and when we find breaches, we will act, including taking disciplinary action,” said a BBC spokesman.
War broke out last week after the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing 1300 civilians and leading to Israeli forces vowing to turn the Gaza Strip into ‘rubble’.
The fresh allegations and complaints come just a day after the London BBC offices were allegedly vandalised with red paint over the broadcaster’s refusal to recognise Hamas as a terrorist organisation. “We are aware of criminal damage to a building in Portland Place, W1A. At this stage, there is no suggestion this is linked to any protest group,” said the Metropolitan Police in a statement to Metro.co.uk.
Growing calls for the BBC to refer to Hamas as terrorists rather than simply a “militant group” have been ignored, with the broadcaster’s editorial stance being to exercise caution when employing the term “terrorist”, recognising that this wording may hinder rather than facilitate comprehension.
“We have given careful consideration to all aspects of our reporting of the Israel-Gaza conflict, both in terms of Hamas’ attacks and Israel’s response – this includes the language that we use,” the broadcaster said in a statement. “The BBC is editorially independent; our role is to explain precisely what is happening so that the public can make their own judgements. Our longstanding position, including during previous conflicts between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, has been that we do not use the term “terrorist” without attribution, in line with the BBC’s Editorial Guidelines”.
