BBC News continues to ignore its own guidelines on ‘material from third parties’

On the evening of December 4^th the BBC News website published a report by David Gritten headlined ‘Israel says body of hostage Itay Svirsky recovered from Gaza’.

Readers of that report are informed that:

“The US, Egypt and Qatar have spent months working on a deal to secure the release of the 96 remaining hostages, 34 of whom are presumed dead, in return for a ceasefire in Gaza.”

That portrayal fails to inform BBC audiences that Hamas also holds two Israeli civilians who entered the Gaza Strip in 2014 and 2015 and the bodies of two soldiers who were killed in 2014.

Gritten’s report goes on:

“The Hostages and Missing Families Forum said the military investigation’s findings “serve as yet another proof that the lives of hostages face constant, daily danger”.

“Time is of the essence – many of the hostages are still alive and enduring impossible conditions of abuse, starvation and isolation,” it warned.

The forum called on US and the other mediators to “do everything necessary to achieve a deal for the hostages’ return”.

It separately welcomed the return of Itay Svirsky’s body for burial in Israel, saying it “provides crucial closure for his family”.”

Readers are not however informed that Itay Svirsky’s parents were murdered by Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7^th 2023. 

Failing to clarify to BBC audiences that the health ministry run by the same terrorist organisation which carried out the October 7^th attacks and the unprecedented massacre of Israelis deliberately avoids distinguishing between civilian and combatant casualties, Gritten goes on:

“More than 44,500 people have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched a military campaign in response to the 7 October attack, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.”

Gritten’s report also includes yet more examples of the now chronic BBC practice of promoting claims made by Hamas-run organisations in the Gaza Strip without independent verification and before details of incidents become clear  – and then failing to update its reporting after they do.

“On Wednesday evening, at least 20 people were killed by an air strike in the Israeli-designated “humanitarian area” in al-Mawasi, west of Khan Younis, according to medics and the Hamas-run Civil Defence Agency.

Civil Defence spokesman Mahmoud Bassal said a tented camp for displaced families was bombed and that the dead included five children.

The Israeli military said its aircraft targeted “senior Hamas terrorists” in the area.”

The IDF did indeed put out such a statement on the evening of December 4^th and the following day, further details were released for publication.

“An Israeli strike on Wednesday night in the southern Gaza Strip killed several Hamas operatives, including a top commander in the terror group’s internal security forces, the military said on Thursday. […]

The military said that the Hamas commander, Osama Ghanim, was involved in “activity to suppress the citizens of Gaza and was responsible for detecting threats against Hamas from within the Strip.

“Ghanim held a key role in implementing Hamas’s brutal methods, which included conducting harsh civilian interrogations while violating human rights, suppressing residents suspected of opposing Hamas, and persecuting civilians from the LGBTQ+ community,” the IDF said.

Following the strike, the IDF said it had identified secondary blasts, indicating the presence of weapons in the area.”

Although the IDF’s original statement noted those secondary blasts and their likely cause, Gritten’s account – which was updated the following day – ignores that part of the story, along with the issue of Hamas’ exploitation of civilians sheltering in a designated humanitarian zone as human shields.

Quoting the same spokesman (who has previously appeared in BBC content) for the Hamas-run Gaza civil defence, along with unidentified “local media”, Gritten goes on to promote more claims which the BBC has not independently verified.

“Another 10 people were killed when Israeli strikes hit three houses in Gaza City, in northern Gaza, according to Mr Bassal.

Earlier, five people were killed in an Israeli strike on the urban Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, medics said. Local media said four of the dead were children and that the strike had targeted a queue outside a bakery.

The Israeli military said it had struck a “terrorist target” in Nuseirat, without giving any details, according to the Associated Press.”

BBC editorial guidelines on Accuracy include the following, under the subheading “Material from Third Parties”: [emphasis added]

“3.3.13 Material supplied by third parties, including news providers, needs to be treated with appropriate caution, taking account of the reputation of the source.

We should normally only rely on an agency report if it can be substantiated by a BBC correspondent or if it is attributed to a reputable news agency.

We should only use other material supplied by third parties if it is credible and reliable. […]

3.3.14 We should only broadcast material from third parties who may have a personal or professional interest in its subject matter if there is an editorial justification. The source of this material should be identified. This includes material from the emergency services, charities and environmental groups.”

The “reputation” of the murderous terrorist organisation Hamas has obviously not deterred the BBC from repeatedly amplifying claims that have not been “substantiated by a BBC correspondent”, made by staff from its emergency services and other departments who have a clear “interest” in promoting the topic of civilian casualties – particularly children – in the Gaza Strip.

Nevertheless, for the past fourteen months the BBC has not only repeatedly ignored the instructions in those editorial guidelines but has serially failed to update its reporting when the actual circumstances of events become clear.

And yet, the BBC would still have its audiences believe that it is a source of ‘news you can trust’.