Israel Gaza Attacks: Pro-Palestine Protesters Accuse BBC of Biased Reporting

Hundreds of Palestine supporters have staged a protest in London against the BBC, accusing the renowned broadcaster of bias in its coverage of the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict.

The demonstrators gathered outside the BBC's office near Oxford Circus on Tuesday evening and chanted "BBC, shame on you".

The protest was organised by several organisations including the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Stop the War and the Campaign against Nuclear Disarmament (CND).

On its website, Stop the War wrote ahead of the protest:

"As a publicly funded broadcaster the BBC is duty-bound to provide balanced reporting without bias. Why, then, is the script for its reporting of the latest savage attack on Gaza yet again written by the Israeli press office?"

In a public letter addressed to the broadcasting company, the organisers argued that the BBC coverage fails to mention the years of occupation of the Palestinian territories by Israel.

"We would like to remind you that Israel is bombing a refugee population – Palestinians who were made refugees when they were forced from their land in 1948 in order to create Israel," the letter reads.

A BBC spokesperson said: "BBC News reports widely and extensively across TV, radio and online, on many different aspects of this ongoing and complex conflict.

"Our role is to explain what is happening and why, and we endeavour to reflect a range of voices, amid deeply held views. We are committed to continuing to report and analyse sometimes fast moving events in an accurate, fair and balanced way."

A similar protest took place on Saturday in Manchester. Hundreds of people gathered outside the BBC's Salford offices and accused the broadcasting corporation of focussing on the plight of Israelis rather than Palestinians.

The protests come as the Israel-Gaza conflict continues to claim lives.

The Israel Defence Forces(IDF) launched Operation Protective Edge last week to restore calm in southern Israel after the firing of a reported 156 rockets from Gaza.

More than 190 Palestinians – including at least 20 children - have been killed and 1,500 injured since the launch of the operation.

The first Israeli victim, killed by a mortar fired from Gaza, was reported on Tuesday (15 July).