BBC’s Obsession with Israel Has Gone Too Far

One of the most touching moments of my last visit to Israel happened in the leafy streets of Rehovot, not far from the gates of the Weizmann Institute. I struck up a conversation with an elderly gentleman at a biotech firm, a British Jew who had left Manchester behind after four decades.

“I had enough,” he said with a sad smile. “I didn’t feel safe in Britain anymore. But here, in Israel, I finally do.”

As he spoke, a video popped up on his phone. “Look,” he said, showing me scenes of chaos —  a Jew business in London being vandalised in broad daylight. “This is what I left behind.”

His story haunted me all the way back to Tel Aviv. Not because it was unfamiliar, but because it was so common. British Jews — peaceful, patriotic citizens — being forced to choose between dignity and diaspora. And perhaps most concerning of all is the role Britain’s national broadcaster, the BBC, has played in deepening that sense of alienation.

Let’s stop pretending. The Hamas-sympathetic BBC has become Britain’s answer to Al Jazeera’s propaganda wing—cloaked in the language of neutrality but operating with the subtlety of a brick through a synagogue window.

This is not new. But it is getting worse.

Take, for example, the recent BBC documentary on Gaza, narrated by the son of a senior Hamas official. Yes, you read that right. It took a public backlash for the BBC to quietly admit this little “omission”— their word, not mine. Hiding the fact that your narrator’s father belongs to a terrorist group is not an omission. It is a moral failure.

Or remember the aftermath of the October 7th massacre? The BBC stubbornly refused to call Hamas terrorists — even defying a direct request from the UK’s own foreign secretary Lord Cameron. This, despite Hamas being a proscribed terror group under British law.

Fast forward to Glastonbury, just last week. Millions tuned in to enjoy the iconic music festival. Instead, they were treated to a live broadcast of anti-Israel venom. Rap duo Bob Vylan led a chant of “Death to the IDF” from the stage — just twenty months after Israeli teenagers were slaughtered at a music festival on October 7th. The irony is stomach-turning— it is truly sickening.

The BBC’s response? A tepid statement noting the comments were “deeply offensive” and that a mild warning had been issued. How reassuring.

And what message does this send to British Jews? That their safety is negotiable? That antisemitism is just another opinion?

Even UK cabinet ministers — Health Secretary Wes Streeting and Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy — acknowledged the BBC has “questions to answer.” But let’s be honest: the time for questions is long past. What is needed now is accountability and reform.

The real concern is what this says about Britain itself. Israeli Minister Amichai Chikli recently said aloud what many fear to whisper: “Without a dramatic change of course by Britain’s political leadership, I see no future for Jewish life in England.” Chikli’s statement took me back to that moment in Rehovot.

It is a sobering thought. But harder and harder to dismiss. Especially when the BBC—the most powerful cultural institution in Britain — routinely fails to show even a shred of balance, let alone moral clarity. Especially when Jewish life is penalised, yet Hamas flags are brazenly flown on university campuses, in the heart of British cities, and even outside the UK Parliament.

Let’s call it what it is: the BBC — even better Britain’s Pravda— has lost the plot. It’s become a megaphone for extremism disguised as journalism. It uplifts voices of hate and silences pleas for help. It airs propaganda and calls it storytelling. It warns viewers about “discriminatory language” while broadcasting calls for the death of Jews in uniform.

That is not just offensive. That is dangerous.

And yet, amid this darkness, Israel continues to shine — as a beacon of resilience and renewal. While the BBC amplifies chants of hate, Israelis rebuild. They heal. They rescue hostages. They innovate the future of Israel — leading the world in science, medicine, and technology.

The IDF, so maligned on Glastonbury’s stage, is the same force that has delivered food to Gaza, treated Palestinian civilians in Israeli hospitals, and defended the only democracy in the Middle East from enemies sworn to its destruction.

That is not something to chant against. That is something to honour.

To my fellow Britons: we owe it to our Jewish neighbours to speak out. To defend the values we claim to cherish — freedom, tolerance, truth.

And to the BBC: this is your moment to change course. Not with vague apologies. But with real action.

Because history is watching.

And to Israel — from Rehovot to Jerusalem — know this: you are not alone. You are admired. You are supported. Your resilience inspires. Your renewal is unstoppable. And no matter how loudly the BBC echoes hate, the world will hear your heartbeat louder.

Because the future is not forged in chants.

It is built in courage.

And no one knows that better than Israel.