BBC under fire after Gaza Journalist calls to "Burn Jews like Hitler did"

The BBC is facing fierce criticism after it was revealed that a Gaza-based journalist frequently featured on BBC Arabic expressed support for terrorist attacks against Jews and made openly anti-Semitic comments on social media.

According to a report by The Telegraph, Samer Elzaenen, a 33-year-old freelance journalist residing in Gaza, posted multiple times over the years inciting violence against Jews. In one chilling post, Elzaenen declared, “We’ll burn you as Hitler did, but this time we won’t leave a single one of you alive.” In another Facebook post from July 2022, he wrote: “When things go wrong for us, shoot the Jews, it fixes everything.”

His violent rhetoric dates back to at least 2011, when he told "Zionist Jews" that Palestinians would reclaim their land by embracing death for Allah's sake, contrasting it with Jews' love for life, and again vowing to “burn” them like Hitler did. In addition to promoting hatred, Elzaenen openly praised over 30 terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians, labeling attackers as "heroes" and "martyrs." After a 2023 car-ramming attack in Jerusalem that killed two children and a young man, he coldly stated the victims would soon "go to hell."

Further complicating matters, Elzaenen used hashtags such as #WeAreAllHamas and glorified the October 7 Hamas assault, including the massacre at the Nova music festival, calling the terrorists "resistance fighters."

In response to the revelations, a BBC spokesperson distanced the organization from Elzaenen, clarifying that he is not an employee but a freelance contributor. “We were not aware of the individuals’ social media activity prior to hearing from them on air. There is no place for antisemitism in our services," the BBC stated.

However, watchdog groups like 'camera' accused the BBC of enabling antisemitism and anti-Israel bias by continuing to use freelancers with egregious histories of hate speech. A spokesperson from 'camera UK' stated, “The BBC misleadingly frames these freelancers as mere ‘contributors’ to avoid taking responsibility for their hatred.”

This controversy follows earlier scandals at BBC Arabic. Last year, another BBC Arabic reporter, Ahmed Alagha, was exposed for calling Jews "devils" and Israelis "less than human" on social media.

The backlash has sparked political demands for reform. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch recently urged a "wholesale reform" of BBC Arabic, accusing the network of spreading extremism under the guise of journalism.

As calls for accountability grow louder, the BBC’s credibility, especially its Arabic service, continues to face heavy scrutiny.