Eight BBC journalists wrote a letter to Al Jazeera accusing their employer of a “double standard” in its reporting on Israel and Palestine.

According to Al Jazeera, the 2,300-word letter said the BBC “has failed to accurately tell this story – through omission and lack of critical engagement with Israel’s claims – and it has therefore failed to help the public engage with and understand the human rights abuses unfolding in Gaza”.

Al Jazeera did not name the eight journalists. All of them are based in the United Kingdom.

While the BBC names Israeli victims and interviews affected families, the letter said, “humanising coverage of Palestinian civilians has been lacking”. 

The journalists said while Palestinians are asked whether they “condemn Hamas”, guests who defend Israel “are not equally asked to ‘condemn’ the actions of the Israeli government”.

“Thousands of Palestinians have been killed since October 7. When will the number be high enough for our editorial stance to change?” the letter said. “...We are asking the BBC to better reflect and defer to the evidence-based findings of official and unbiased humanitarian organisations.”

It continued: “It is largely in the last few weeks – as civilian deaths have exponentially increased and Western countries’ appetite for Israel’s attacks has waned – that the BBC has made more effort to humanise Palestinian civilians. For many, this feels too little too late, and shows that the positions taken by governments in the UK and US have undue influence on coverage.”

When contacted by Al Jazeera, a BBC spokesperson denied the allegations contained in the letter and said: “When interviewing either the Israeli government, Hamas, Palestinian representatives, or other leaders, we are robust, challenging and aim to hold power to account.”

Hamas’s October 7 terror strikes had killed over 1,200 people in Israel. Subsequently, over 11,000 civilians in Gaza were killed by Israeli bombardment. While protests have taken place across the world, India hasn’t seen as many – mainly because Indian authorities don’t want you to see it. Read Nirupama Subramanian’s piece in Newslaundry.