THE BBC’s own journalists have accused the institution of bias in its coverage of Israel’s war on Gaza.

Broadcaster Al Jazeera reported today that it had received a 2,300-word anonymous letter written by eight journalists employed by the corporation.

“The BBC has failed to accurately tell this story – through omission and lack of critical engagement with Israel’s claims – and it has therefore failed to help the public engage with and understand the human rights abuses unfolding in Gaza,” the letter said.

“Thousands of Palestinians have been killed since October 7. When will the number be high enough for our editorial stance to change?”

The journalists criticised a “double standard in how civilians are seen,” with the BBC dedicating coverage to the suffering of Israelis, interviewing affected families and naming the victims while “in comparison, humanising coverage of Palestinian civilians has been lacking.” 

“Little attempt has also been made to fully utilise the abundance of social media content from brave journalists in Gaza and the West Bank,” they added.

One of the co-writers told Al Jazeera: “For me, and definitely for other people of colour, we can see blatantly that certain civilian lives are considered more worthy than others – that there is some sort of hierarchy at play.”

The journalist said it appears some staff members “don’t empathise as much with [Palestinians], as they do, for example, with Ukrainian civilians.”

The group also noted that while Palestinians have been asked whether they “condemn Hamas,” the same scrutiny has not been applied to guests who defend Israel's actions.

The letter also warned the BBC was omitting key historical context in its coverage about Israel’s occupation.

“For Israel’s bombardment to be considered ‘self-defence,’ events must begin with the Hamas-led attack,” they said.

“News updates and articles neglect to include a line or two of critical historical context – on 75 years of occupation, the Nakba, or the asymmetric death toll across decades.”

The journalists said terms such as “massacre” and “atrocity” have been reserved “only for Hamas, framing the group as the only instigator and perpetrator of violence in the region. This is inaccurate but aligns with the BBC’s overall coverage.”

The letter stated that the BBC has organised “trauma support” for staff affected by the conflict, “but for many of us – especially people of colour – the BBC’s coverage has been part of our distress.”

Stop the War Coalition convener Lindsay German lauded the journalists as “brave.”

She said the BBC “claims to be impartial, but actually, they tend to be much more accepting of right-wing ideas.”

Ms German said that the “massive level of oppression” suffered by Palestinians had been “glossed over.”

“Pro-Palestine protesters are treated as extreme and very rarely given any serious coverage,” she added.

The BBC “wouldn’t dream” of having coverage of the coronation highlighting royalists behaving badly, yet in the case of pro-Palestine marches “they really accept the view, which is pushed by a small number of politically motivated people in this country, that these are hate marches,” she said.

A BBC spokesperson said its reporting “made clear the devastating human cost to civilians living in Gaza and Israel.

“When interviewing either the Israeli government, Hamas, Palestinian representatives, or other leaders, we are robust, challenging and aim to hold power to account.”