“We recognise the challenges of reporting accurately in war zones,” the statement said. “But the evidence presented in this report goes far beyond what might reasonably be attributed to errors made in the fog of war.
“These are not academic errors. They have real world consequences. Inaccurate media reporting on the conflict contributes to the delegitimisation of Israel in the public sphere, which in turn fuels anti-Jewish hatred, and has made British Jews and Jews around the world less safe and secure in their communities.”
Three quarters of UK Jews say BBC is biased against Israel, according to a poll commissioned by the JC (Photo: Getty Images)Getty Images
The review lists several examples of the BBC’s alleged anti-Israel stance, including when the broadcaster used the term “revenge attacks” in a headline about Israel’s military response to Hamas’s attack on October 7 on the day of the massacre itself — at a time when other media outlets were condemning the terrorist attack.
It also cites the BBC’s initial decision not to call Hamas terrorists, instead opting for “gunmen” and “militants”, because it would be seen as “taking sides”, before backtracking after days of criticism from outraged Jewish organisations and politicians.
The BBC’s false allegation on October 17 that hundreds of people had been killed in an Israeli strike on the Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza City is also highlighted in the report, as an example of the corporation’s coverage causing “unrest” in European and Middle Eastern countries and “serious arson attacks upon synagogues in Germany and Tunisia”.
The report outlines how the BBC subsequently failed to remove articles which suggested the blast was caused by Israeli military, even after the BBC admitted its reporting had been wrong.
The review was edited by Cohen using research compiled by the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (Camera), a non-profit founded in 1982 to combat “anti-Israel and anti-Jewish prejudice” in the press.
The review has accused the BBC of having fuelled “the flames of antisemitism that have spread across the world" (Photo: Getty Images)AFP via Getty Images
In the forward to the report, written by Cohen and Baroness Deech, a former governor of the BBC from 2002 to 2006, it said: “The BBC all too often accepts Hamas’s distortions as fair framing or fact. Worse than that, it then sells them on to a credulous world as news burnished by the BBC’s authority and reputation.
“Whenever the corporation is faced with the choice of whose account or narrative to believe, it seldom points in Israel’s direction. For Hamas in this war, proof is rarely necessary. For the IDF and Israel, proof is rarely enough.”
Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis has endorsed the report’s call for an independent inquiry into the BBC, “with terms of reference that command the confidence of the Jewish community”.
He said: “Few institutions are as vital for our national cultural identity or for the health of our democracy as the BBC. That’s why the content of this report, which records the repeated and longstanding failure to ensure impartial and accurate news coverage of the existential war that Israel is fighting on multiple fronts, is so profoundly troubling.”
He added: “The data could not be clearer: wherever sustained misinformation and demonisation of Israel is found, incidents of anti-Jewish racism surge.
“That’s one of the reasons why the accuracy and objectivity of our national broadcaster is so important for the Jewish community. And of course beyond that, in an uncertain world the public needs to know that it can trust the BBC.”
He said he knew that “this is a matter that senior leaders at the BBC take seriously”, but the multiple failings highlighted by the report show how much work there is yet to do.
“Trust in the BBC is crucial, but trust can only be restored when impartiality is upheld and accountability is ensured,” he added.
The BBC responded by saying that it always listens to concerns but “does not recognise the overall characterisation of our journalism in this report”.
A BBC spokeswoman said: “The Israel-Gaza conflict is a polarising and difficult story to cover and we understand there are a range of views. The BBC has focused on reporting the conflict impartially, bringing audiences breaking news, insight and analysis, and reflecting all perspectives.
“While we do not recognise the overall characterisation of our journalism in this report, we will of course always look at anything raised with us with care and attention.”
Cohen’s review comes after the findings of the Asserson Report, led by British-Israeli lawyer Trevor Asserson, which alleged that the BBC breached its own editorial guidelines 1,500 times during the Israel-Hamas conflict.
The chair of the BBC, Dr Samir Shah, said earlier this month the corporation was considering a review of its Middle East coverage.
