Under-pressure BBC forced to change headline on child-killing Israeli strike

The BBC has changed a headline after facing pressure. Initially, the headline failed to say that Israel carried out the airstrike, which killed two newborn twins in Gaza:

Good to see BBC updated its headline on the killing of newborn Palestinian twins to name Israel.

Keep pressuring and holding the media accountable. pic.twitter.com/KilAadN5Fp

— Assal Rad (@AssalRad) August 15, 2024

The father of Asser and Ayssel said “I didn’t even have the time to celebrate them”. They were only four days old. He was out collecting their birth certificates when Israel killed them and their mother.

Israel has killed 115 babies who were born since the bombardment of Gaza began.

Criticism of the BBC

Others further criticised the BBC. They said the new headline still left it open to question as to whether Israel killed the infants, in suggesting it’s only a claim:

The BBC edited the headline, but it still lacking objectivity!

It must be: 𝗜𝘀𝗿𝗮𝗲𝗹𝗶 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗯𝗮𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝘄𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗚𝗮𝘇𝗮 pic.twitter.com/M01eRu86iL

— Motasem A Dalloul (@AbujomaaGaza) August 15, 2024

On 10 August, the BBC faced more backlash. This time, its headline called out Israel first try. But it did not mention that the strike was on a school:

Difficult to imagine any other situation where the headline wouldn’t mention that the strike was on a school pic.twitter.com/hWwdWH2gcn

— Frankie Boyle Updates (@frankieboyle) August 10, 2024

An Al Jazeera investigation into the Israeli strike in question – on al-Tabin school in Gaza City – found it was “deliberately timed to cause maximum casualties”. It said there were a “large number of displaced people deliberately targeted”. In five weeks, Israel has bombed at least 18 schools in Gaza.

People on social media branded another BBC headline, from December 2023, as a “lesson in propaganda”:

The BBC’s reporting of Refaat’s killing is an insult and a lesson in propaganda. In the headline alone it 1) does not name who killed Refaat 2) slanders him as “controversial” and 3) implies only Palestinians are mourning him. pic.twitter.com/WpQeqp6Ifx

— Louis Allday (@Louis_Allday) December 8, 2023

The Israeli airstrike killed Palestinian professor Refaat Alareer who taught literature at the Islamic University of Gaza. He co-founded the organisation We are Not Numbers, which trained young writers through matching them with more experienced ones.

And it’s not just the headlines. In another BBC piece, the outlet painted Israel’s aim to colonise Gaza as “Who wouldn’t want a beach house?”

Also, content analysis from the Centre for Media Monitoring found that the BBC and other corporate outlets show “overwhelming” bias in favour of Israel. The report found outlets remove context through failing to mention Israel’s occupation of Palestine, as well as that the BBC failed to challenge genocidal language from Israeli officials.

Featured image via Reuters – YouTube