Since the very beginning of the war that began on October 7th when Hamas terrorists invaded Israel and perpetrated an unprecedented massacre, the BBC has promoted unverified claims concerning casualties in the Gaza Strip.
October 7th 2023: ‘Israel attack: PM says Israel at war after 250 killed in attack from Gaza’, by Yolande Knell, Raffi Berg and David Gritten:
“Israel has responded with a wave of air strikes on Gaza that have killed 232 people and wounded 1,600, medics say.”
October 8th 2023: ‘Israeli forces fight to drive out Hamas militants as death toll passes 600’, by Yolande Knell, Rushi Abu Alouf and David Gritten:
“Palestinian health ministry officials said more than 300 people, including children, had been killed in Gaza and that another 1,990 had been injured.”
Only later in October did the BBC begin informing its audiences that those “health ministry officials” and “medics” are in fact part of a system run by the very terrorist organisation which initiated the war. Nine days after the war began, the BBC’s fact-checking department reassured audiences that there was “no reason to disbelieve the figures released by the health ministry in Gaza”.
BBC’S FACT CHECK DEPARTMENT ROOTS FOR HAMAS CASUALTY FIGURES
For over four months BBC audiences have been provided with information concerning casualty figures in the Gaza Strip which the corporation has not independently verified and which makes no distinction between civilian and combatant casualties, in accordance with Hamas’ long-standing policy. Moreover, the BBC’s presentation has repeatedly uncritically amplified Hamas’ claim that most of the casualties in the Gaza Strip are women and children – for example:
“Women and children make up about 70% of those who have been killed in Gaza during the current conflict, says the Hamas-run health ministry.” [source]
“Some 21,978 people – mostly women and children – have been killed in Gaza since 7 October, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. Its latest update said 56,697 people in Gaza had been wounded over the same period.” [source]
“Since then, more than 23,200 people – mostly women and children – have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.” [source]
“In Gaza, more than 23,350 people – mostly women and children – have been killed, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, since the war began in the aftermath of Hamas’s 7 October attacks on southern Israel.” [source] [emphasis added]
While the BBC has had no qualms about promoting such claims from Hamas, on the isolated occasions on which the topic of terrorist combatants has been mentioned, it has been presented with qualifying statements – for example:
“Since the start of the war, more than 26,750 Palestinians have been killed and at least 65,000 injured, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in the Gaza Strip, which has been governed by the group and blockaded by Israel and Egypt since 2007.
Israeli officials say that 9,000 of those killed were Hamas militants but have not provided evidence for the figure.” [source]
“Since then, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, more than 29,000 Palestinians have been killed and 69,000 wounded as Israel has launched missiles and ground operations into the Gaza Strip in response.
The Israeli Defense Forces says it has killed nearly 12,000 Hamas fighters in Gaza, in addition to more than 1,000 fighters inside Israel. It has not disclosed how it has calculated these figures.” [source] [emphasis added]
On the morning of February 19th Reuters reported that:
“A Hamas official based in Qatar told Reuters that the group estimated it had lost 6,000 fighters during the four-month-old conflict, half the 12,000 Israel says it has killed.”
The BBC, however, has chosen to completely ignore that statement from a Hamas official.
BBC News website content published after the appearance of that Reuters report continues to employ the same template seen since October 7th: [emphasis added]
“But he has since been vocally critical of Israel’s retaliatory military campaign, which the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza says has killed more than 28,800 people, mainly women and children.”
“Israel’s military response has killed 29,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry.”
“The Israeli military campaign against Hamas has killed 29,000 people in the Palestinian territory, according to the Hamas-run health ministry there.”
“The Israeli military campaign has killed 29,000 people in the Palestinian territory, according to the Hamas-run health ministry there.”
“Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says 29,195 people have been killed in the territory since then, including at least 103 in the past 24 hours.”
“The Israeli military campaign has left more than 29,000 people dead in Gaza, according to the Palestinian territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.”
“Israel responded by launching a military campaign in Gaza, during which 29,300 people have been killed, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.”
Apparently even the admission by a Hamas official that thousands of those killed in the Gaza Strip were terrorist combatants is not going to have any effect on the way in which the BBC chooses to present the topic of casualties to its audiences.
Seems to some people there is either a direct line to Hamas headquarters from the BBC or one of their employees is a trusted member of Hamas. It is sad that the so called impartial and world trusted broadcast corporation is acting as a mouthpiece for an Islamist terrorist organization. #defundthebbc
Perhaps it Knell
On the World at One today, Sarah Montague repeated the claim that women and children make up about 70% of those who have been killed in Gaza during the current conflict. I haver sent in a complaint to the BBC, asking if that has been verfiied.