BBC Found To Have Breached Broadcasting Code Over Gaza Documentary for Hiding Narrator’s Link To Hamas
The BBC has been found to have seriously breached broadcasting rules over its Gaza documentary Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone, after it failed to disclose that the 13-year-old narrator was the son of a senior official in the Hamas-run government.
UK media regulator Ofcom called the omission “materially misleading” and said the audience was denied “critical information” about the narrator's background that may have impacted their perception of the film’s content. “This failing had the potential to erode the significantly high levels of trust that audiences would have placed in a BBC factual programme about the Israel-Gaza war,” Ofcom said in a statement.
The documentary, produced by independent company Hoyo Films, aired earlier this year and featured a boy named Abdullah describing life in Gaza during the ongoing conflict. What viewers weren’t told was that Abdullah’s father is Ayman Alyazouri, the deputy agriculture minister in the Hamas-led administration.
The connection came to light after the programme aired in February. The BBC pulled it from iPlayer shortly afterward, and an internal review in July admitted the broadcast had broken its editorial guidelines on accuracy. According to that internal report, three members of the external production team were aware of the boy's family ties — but no one at the BBC itself had been informed.
Now, Ofcom has backed that finding with its own investigation, launched after receiving 20 complaints about the programme. The watchdog described the incident as a “serious breach” and has ordered the BBC to broadcast a public statement about the ruling on BBC Two at 9pm, on a date that is yet to be confirmed.
In response to the findings, the BBC said: We have apologised for this and we accept Ofcom's decision in full. We will comply with the sanction as soon as the date and wording are finalised.”
The incident adds to broader concerns about how public service broadcasters maintain editorial standards in coverage of sensitive geopolitical issues, particularly in conflict zones. Ofcom's ruling highlighted the importance of transparency in such reporting, especially for an organisation like the BBC, where viewer trust is seen as vital.
The BBC has not yet confirmed when the on-air statement will be broadcast.
