How the BBC Covered an IDF Counter-Terrorism Operation

The BBC’s Yolande Knell has committed another journalistic travesty: “Over 24 Hours Late and Just 37 Words: BBC News ‘Reports’ Tel Aviv Terror Attack,” by Hadar Sela, CAMERA UK, August 8, 2023:

…“On Friday, armed Jewish settlers attacked a Palestinian village where a young Palestinian man was shot dead…” […]

On Friday night, extremist settlers went on the rampage in a Palestinian village in the West Bank, killing a 19-year-old man. Israeli police say two settlers have been arrested.

The latest settler attack has been condemned as terrorism by Washington, its stronger language appearing to show increased frustration with the positions of Israel’s far-right government.”

Yolande Knell should have mentioned that the claim by the Bidenites of Israeli “terrorism” was strongly objected to by the Israelis, who noted that the Palestinian died in the course of a violent clash between Palestinians and Israeli settlers. It was in the course of this fight that one of the Palestinians threw a very large rock that hit one of the settlers in the head, grievously wounding him. He remains hospitalized, in serious condition. Only then did one of the Israelis, fearing more such life-threatening attacks, fire at, and kill, the Palestinian attacker who had thrown the rock. Knell’s version of the story leaves out the clash between two sides, and the rock thrown by a Palestinian that hit an Israeli in the head; she only reports that “extremist settlers…killed a 19-year man” without mentioning the clash or the rock that was thrown and seriously injured a settler, before a shot was fired at the Palestinian, who is presented not as a rock-thrower but as a peaceful innocent.

In addition to the two men arrested, five additional people were detained in relation to that incident in Burqa, which is still under investigation. Later, five Palestinians were also arrested in connection with the same event….

The Israeli police were perfectly willing to arrest settlers whom they had reason to believe were involved in the clash with the Palestinians. Contrary to anti-Israel propaganda, the Israeli government is willing to arrest, and to punish, Israelis who harm innocent Palestinians. But as the investigation into the incident continued, it became clear that the picture was more complicated than initially realized; that the Palestinians had also been engaged in violence and had tried to kill settlers with large rocks heaved at their heads. Hence after the arrest of seven settlers, five Palestinians also believed to have been involved were arrested.

The third version of Knell’s report had a new headline: “Israeli forces kill three Palestinian militants in West Bank.” The word “alleged” had been removed. But the word “militant” remained; Knell was determined to keep out the word “terrorist” despite the claims of PIJ and Al-Aqsa Martys’ Brigade that the three men killed belonged to their groups.

The version which currently appears on the BBC News website tells BBC audiences that one of the three terrorists was claimed by the PIJ:

“Islamic Jihad claimed one of those killed was a member, and vowed a “strong response from the resistance”.”

Here again Knell has conceded only part of the truth. In the present version of her story, only one of the terrorists was identified as a member of a terrorist group, Islamic Jihad. But at the time of her writing, all three had been claimed as members of terror groups. Why did Knell choose to recognize the terror link of only one?

Readers are told that “The youngest of those killed on Sunday was 15 years old, Palestinian reports said” but not that Baraa Ahmed Qurum was claimed by the Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades.

Knell’s portrayal of the terror attack in Tel Aviv in the latest version of her report comes in thirty-five words which still provide no details about the victim and again fail to clarify that the terrorist was a member of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad:

“The deaths on Sunday came a day after a Palestinian gunman fatally shot an Israeli security guard in Tel Aviv. Another guard killed the attacker.

He is said to have come from the Jenin area.”

That’s it. In her 35-word account of the Tel Aviv terror attack, Knell cannot bring herself to identify the terrorist as a member of Palestinian Islamic Jihad. He’s merely a “Palestinian gunman.”

Once again Knell refrained from informing readers of the US State Department’s condemnation of that attack. The description of the incident in Burqa and related statements in the latest version is 114 words longer than in the previous version.

Here’s what Yolande Knell ought to have reported:

“In Burqa, near Ramallah, Israeli settlers and Palestinians engaged in rock throwing. A large rock was thrown point-blank at the head of a settler, severely injuring him, and in fear for his own life and those of the other Israelis, he shot dead the Palestinian rock thrower. Meanwhile, the IDF managed to get wind of a three-man terror cell making its way to attack a settlement, and those IDF soldiers managed to ambush and kill all three, who were identified as members by the PIJ and Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade, both recognized terror groups, by the Palestinians themselves. In Tel Aviv, a 42-year old security guard, Chen Amir, was shot dead by a PIJ terrorist; Chen leaves three small daughters.”

There would be nothing about “alleged militants.” They were caught, armed, on their way to carrying out an attack. Nothing merely “alleged” about it. And no more identifying them as “militants”; they were terrorists, claimed by PIJ and Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade as their members.

But will Knell be able to reform? It’s doubtful. Like so many BBC reporters covering Israel and the Palestinians — Robert Fisk, Jeremy Bowen, Orla Guerlin, Barbara Plett all come to mind, Yolande Knell is determined to favor the Palestinians and present the Israelis in the worst possible light. “Terrorists” are called “militants” and their affiliations suppressed; the context of Israeli attacks — such as the murderous-rock throwing at Burqa by Palestinians, which prompted the shot fired in self-defense by the settler who was hit on the head by a large rock — are never mentioned. I don’t think Yolande Knell can change her ways, or her diseased sympathy. So it is up to the rest of us to keep calling her to account, and to keep pressuring the BBC to promptly correct her biased dispatches. Keep rolling back her tide of ignorance and malice. Perhaps, in the end, the BBC will do the right thing and replace her altogether. That’s a consummation devoutly to be wished.