Published On: Wed, Feb 19th, 2025
Warsaw News | 2,622 views

Fury as BBC accused of using Hamas officials’ son in Palestine documentary | UK | News


The BBC has been accused of promoting “Hamas propaganda” after airing a documentary about the lives of ordinary Palestinians, which focuses on a boy whose father is a minister for the terrorist group, it is claimed.

The documentary ‘Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone’ follows Abdullah Al-Yazouri, 14, whose dad is said to be Hamas’ minister for agriculture. The corporation did not disclose this information to viewers.

The film, released on Monday, shows the conflict through the eyes of three children living in Gaza and is narrated in English by Abdullah.

Abdullah’s father is said to be Ayman Alyazouri, a senior Hamas official who is currently the minister for agriculture.

Labour Against Antisemitism has lodged a formal complaint to the national broadcaster arguing that the producers failed to adequately screen its subjects.

It is not known whether the crew knew about the boy’s Hamas links.

Alex Hearn, from Labour Against Antisemitism, said: “This documentary appears to have been a failure of due diligence by the BBC, with Hamas propaganda promoted as reliable fact at the taxpayers’ expense.

“There needs to be an urgent investigation into how this happened once again.

“Misinformation is the story of the Israel-Hamas conflict, and this is not an isolated case. There has been a failure of news platforms to adequately scrutinise sources and a willingness to regurgitate Hamas disinformation repeatedly.”

Abdullah, who for a time was educated in the UK, was featured in a Channel 4 news item from November 2023, discussing the impact of Israeli bombing.

In it Abdullah was accompanied by a man called Khalil Abu Shamala, who was presented as his father.

However, Shamala, appears to refer to Abdullah as “my nephew” in a 2012 Facebook post.

Shamala has appeared alongside Hamas minister Alyazouri in pictures. Shamala is believed to be the former director of a non-governmental organisation called Al Dameer. Al Dameer campaigns on behalf of Palestinian fighters jailed by Israel.

The organisation is accused of having links to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which is a designated terrorist organisation in the US, the EU, Canada, and Israel.

Express has contacted the BBC for comment.



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