The BBC has been hit with fresh allegations over its coverage of the terror attacks on Israel with claims it has given a platform for “Hamas propaganda” on its main political show this morning.
The row has exploded after allegations were reported that BBC Arab journalists were trying to justify the brutal murder of Israelis.
It comes in a week where Hamas have burnt children alive, beheaded babies, slaughtered young festival-goers, and killed a Holocaust survivor among the more than 1,400 Israelis it has executed.
The BBC has already been condemned on all sides of the political divide for refusing to describe Hamas with the accurate word “terrorist” and instead equivicating their babraity by describing them as “fighters” or “militants”.
But a furious row broke out this morning as a Tory MP claimed the BBC had “hit a new low” by having Husam Zomlot, the Head of the Palestinian Mission to the United Kingdom, on the Laura Kuenssberg show this morning presented by Victoria Derbyshire.
Mr Zomlot is not a member of Hamas and is part of the Fatah movement. He is also a strategic advisor to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
However, Tory Workington MP Mark Jenkinson accused Zomlot of spreading Hamas propaganda in his BBC interview this morning.
Mr Jenkinson Tweeted: “The @bbc hits a new low today. @hzomlot allowed to spread the propaganda Hamas spreads. Won’t call for Hamas to be wiped out. @vicderbyshire puts forward the Hamas line. Disgusted.
He added: “The @BBC has lost its way. These attempts to draw moral equivalence on both sides of this are sickening”.
Mr Zomlot was supposed to attend a Labour rally last week at the party conference in Liverpool but pulled out at the last minute amid speculation shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy would refuse to attend if he was there.
Mr Zomlot came on the Kuenssberg show to refute fellow guest and Israeli ambassador to the UK, Mark Regev’s comments that Israel has followed international humanitarian law.
He said: “He [Regev] just claimed Israel will not target hospitals, yesterday one of the major hospitals was bombarded.
“We have statement from the Anglican Archbishop in Jerusalem and all the churches in the UK condemning that act.
“These lies right here on camera that Israel sticks to the rules of international law. Seriously? Cutting off food, electricity, cutting off people from any humanitarean assistance is the rules of international law?”
These accusations have been denied by Israel, whose government has provided extra time for civilians to leave the north of Gaza before it sends in ground troops to eliminate Gaza.
Meanwhile, the BBC has been hit by claims that its Arab journalists have tried to justify the killing of Israelis.
The Telegraph reported that one social media post described the October 7 atrocity as a “morning of hope”.
Another senior correspondent appeared to make fun of the Israeli relatives of a grandmother who was abducted by Hamas.
Another tweeted to say that “Israel’s prestige is crying in the corner”.
The BBC is understood to be “urgently investigating” the allegations.
Meanwhile, on GB News this morning veteran former BBC political editor John Sergeant defended the BBC’s attempts to be neutral even though he admitted that he believes Hamas are terrorists.
Supporting World Affairs editor John Simpson, he said: “It’s so part of my natural instinct after 30 years as a correspondent for the BBC not to imagine in a sitation like this as who is right and who is wrong.
“No we report it as a dreadful story.
“What would happen in a sitation like this there is a headline saying ‘the BBC decides to support Israel’?”
