The BBC is under investigation by counter terrorism police (Image: Getty/GB News)
The BBC is facing a new firestorm after GB News announced that the publicly funded broadcaster is being assessed for potentially breaching counter-terrorism laws. The broadcaster admitted making payments to a family with direct ties to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization, during the production of their documentary, Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone.
Mark White of GB News broke the news, stating: “Counter-terrorism police are assessing whether police action is required after the admitted to paying a family with ties to Hamas for making that controversial documentary about Gaza. It’s an astonishing story.” This shocking development has raised serious questions about the ethics and legality of the ’s operational procedures. The outrage over payments began over the documentary featuring a 14-year-old narrator, Abdullah, who has now been identified as the son of a senior Hamas minister. White explained: “Now we’ve just had the last day or so the confirmation that this production company paid a sum of money to a bank account of the sister of the mother of this 14-year-old boy.
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Narrator, Abdullah, 14, has now been identified as the son of a senior Hamas minister (Image: BBC)
“So that there is effectively money that’s gone to the family of this senior minister. It’s such a messy old situation over there, it would be difficult to trace exactly where that money is going and the possibility of course as always that there may be other payments.”
The implications of the transaction are vast, given Hamas’s status as a prescribed terrorist organization in the UK. Funding such entities is not only a breach of international law but also a severe criminal offence within British law, explained White.
“The admit themselves there are serious errors and now we’ve had a statement from the Metropolitan police this afternoon and they said we are aware of a documentary about Gaza and we have received a number of reports raising concerns, it goes on to say officers from the Met counter-terrorism command are currently assessing whether any police action is required in relation to this matter.”
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Public outcry over the BBC’s actions has been swift and severe (Image: Getty)
White also noted the legal ramifications of these actions, explaining: “The reason is simple – Hamas is a prescribed terrorist organization in the UK; sending them money would be a criminal offence. I’ve covered multiple court cases over the years with people who have been convicted and jailed for sending money to Isis and other prescribed terrorist organizations.”
Public outcry over the ’s actions has been swift and severe. Social media platforms have been abuzz with calls for a full investigation. One comment read: “Why are the police assessing if action is required? It is in the Public’s interest to carry out an investigation.” Further controversy surrounds the documentary itself after it was accused of altering the content to mask references to terrorism and antisemitic sentiments.
Originally intended to offer a glimpse into life in Gaza, reviewed translations show examples of softening or altering the content to hide examples of antisemitism. Early reports indicate that terms such as “Jews” were systematically replaced with “Israelis” or “Israeli forces,” and mentions of “Jihad” were softened to “battle” or “resistance”.
The has since pulled the documentary from its streaming service.