The BBC’s specialist fact-checking team used a Hamas-employed journalist who mourned the death of a terrorist as the sole eyewitness source in its analysis of a recent aid convoy incident in Gaza, a report has claimed.

In its examination of the evidence surrounding the deaths of 112 Palestinians when Israel-escorted aid trucks were mobbed, BBC Verify presented an account from Mahmoud Awadeyah, who said: "Israelis purposefully fired at the men... they were trying to get near the trucks that had the flour.”

He added: “They [Palestinians] were fired at directly and prevented people to come near those killed."

However, according to dossier of social media posts compiled by investigative journalist David Collier, Awadeyah mourned the death of Khalil Al Bahtini – an Islamic Jihad military leader – who was killed by Israel in May 2023.

Mahmoud (Al) Awadeyah on IRGC-run Tasnim News Agency (Photo: David Collier)

Collier included an image posted on social media which appeared to show Awadeyah sharing a meal with the terror chief.

Awadeyah has reportedly worked for the Hamas news outlet, Al Quds Today, and Tasnim News Agency, a channel set up and controlled by the Iranian terror militia, the IRGC.

A Facebook messages allegedly posted by Awadeyah after a terror attack in Israel in January 2023 reads: “A state of rejoicing, exuberance, and mosques confirmed with exuberance. Revenge for the fetus”.

A screengrab from Awadeyah's Facebook which allegedly shows the journalist sharing a meal with a leader of the military wing of Islamic Jihad, Khalil Al Bahtini (Photo: David Collier)

Many Palestinians were killed and hundreds wounded in the chaos surrounding an aid convoy that passed along the coastal road outside Gaza City on 29 February.

Collier said it was “disgraceful” that BBC Verify cited Awadeyah and accused the corporation of aiding the spread of antisemitism with its report.

A BBC spokesperson said: “We stand by our journalism and reject the allegations in this piece.

“The BBC is not allowed access into Gaza, but we use a range of accounts from eyewitnesses and cross reference these against official statements and footage, including from the IDF. The fact that someone has expressed an opinion on social media doesn’t automatically disqualify them from giving eye-witness testimony.

“It is simply wrong to claim an agenda on our part – and ignores much of the journalism we have done, including BBC Verify accounts of the Supernova festival massacre.”