Revisiting a BBC News website report from December 2017

In December 2017 the BBC claimed that three Gazans had been 'shot dead' by Israeli forces. An investigation showing that one of them was not has not been reported.

On December 15th 2017 the BBC News website published a report titled “Jerusalem: Palestinians killed in fresh clashes with Israel” in which audiences were told that:

“Three Palestinians have died in Gaza during clashes with Israeli troops near the border, Palestinian officials say. […]

Palestinian medical sources say the men were shot dead on the eastern and northern borders of the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said they were investigating the reports.”

The findings of an investigation into one of those cases were published several days later but the BBC did not produce any follow-up reporting despite the fact that the IDF concluded that no live fire had been used in that case.

The same case was the subject of further investigation, the conclusions of which were published in late March.

“Findings of a Military Police investigation into the death of Ibrahim Abu Thuraya, a double amputee who was killed during a violent protest near the border fence in the northern Gaza Strip in mid December, reveal that the sniper fire had ended at least an hour before the time Abu Thuraya was hurt according to Palestinian reports, Ynet has learned.”

Once again, no BBC follow-up reporting appeared and the claim from unidentified “Palestinian medical sources” (actually Hamas) that three people were “shot dead” by Israeli forces on that day remains in situ on the BBC News website.

Our colleague Tal Raphael has been taking a closer look at the differing accounts of that incident:

THE DEATH OF ABU THURAYA: WHAT REALLY HAPPENED?

Related Articles:

Will media report on investigation’s conclusion that Ibrahim Abu Thuraya was NOT killed by IDF snipers?  UK Media Watch

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