Gaza reporter Ahmed Alagha has reportedly been banned from appearing on the BBC’s Arabic service after describing Jews as “devils” and Israelis as “not human beings”.
Alagha, a regular contributor to BBC Arabic’s coverage of the war in Gaza, was barred from the channel after The Telegraph uncovered derogatory and antisemitic comments apparently made by the journalist on social media.
In one post, following Israeli strikes in Gaza, Alagha reportedly wrote that the Israeli occupation “is the embodiment of filth, the unrivalled swamp of wickedness,” adding: “As for the Jews, they are the devils of hypocrites.”
The following day he reportedly said: “The ‘Israelis’ are not human beings to begin with, rather they are not even beasts. Perhaps they belong to a race for which no description can capture the extent of their lust and sadism.”
Alagha, described on air as a Palestinian journalist, has appeared on BBC Arabic reporting from Gaza numerous times since January last year.
The BBC reportedly ordered its Arabic channel to keep Alagha off air after his statements were brought to the corporation’s attention in May, adding to ongoing controversy over BBC Arabic’s output, which critics have accused of being biased against Israel.
The disputes over BBC Arabic’s coverage even prompted BBC chair Dr Samir Shah to announce an independent review into the channel’s Middle East reporting.
Media campaign group Camera UK welcomed the BBC’s decision to bar Alagha from the channel but condemned “the process by which the BBC obtains and broadcasts Gaza Strip information”.
“BBC Arabic’s editors specifically seem to be trapped inside an echo chamber,” a spokesperson for Camera UK said.
“This precedent would be unimaginable were Alagha to target any other minority group in the UK, let alone a group involved in the same conflict he purports to cover.”
A BBC spokesman told The Telegraph: “Ahmed Alagha is not a BBC member of staff or part of the BBC’s reporting team. His social media posts do not reflect the BBC’s view, and we are absolutely clear that there is no place for anti-Semitism on our services. We will not be using him as a contributor in this way again.”
