UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) has reported the BBC to the Counter Terrorism Police for potential terrorism-related offenses. UKLFI has also filed a report against the co-producers of Hoyo Films for possible terrorism and fraud offenses.
UKLFI is a voluntary organization of lawyers dedicated to supporting Israel through their legal expertise. Its members and supporters engage in advocacy, legal research, and campaigning to defend Israel, Israeli organizations, Israelis, and those who support Israel against BDS and other efforts to undermine, attack, or delegitimize them.
The complaint had to do with “Gaza: How to Survive a War Zone,” a 2025 British documentary, co-directed by Jamie Roberts and Yousef Hammash from Hoyo Films. It was commissioned by BBC Current Affairs and This World for BBC Two, and BBC iPlayer.
The film follows the lives of four young people living through the Gaza war. However, the BBC removed the film from its iPlayer following reports that the narrator of the documentary was the son of a Hamas official.
Part of the BBC Documentary “Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone” Following the lives of 4 young people trying to survive in Gaza. pic.twitter.com/Fj4WDIFb26
— Translating Falasteen (Palestine) (@translatingpal) February 18, 2025
Investigative journalist David Collier discovered that the 13-year-old narrator of the film is Abdullah Ayman Eliyazouri, the son of Dr. Ayman Al-Yazouri, a member of the Hamas government. Dr. Al-Yazouri currently serves as the Deputy Minister of Agriculture in Gaza and has held other prominent positions within the Hamas-controlled administration. Abdullah is also related to Ibrahim al-Yazouri, one of the founders of Hamas. Given these connections, it appears that the child narrator is part of a family with strong ties to Hamas, which is recognized by the UK as a terrorist organization.
BBC issued an official apology on February 27, saying, “The BBC Board was updated on that work. It has identified serious flaws in the making of this program. Some of these were made by the production company, and some by the BBC; all of them are unacceptable. BBC News takes full responsibility for these and the impact that these have had on the Corporation’s reputation. We apologize for this.”
According to the statement, the BBC repeatedly asked the production company in writing about any potential connections the child narrator and his family might have with Hamas. UKLFI argues that this suggests the BBC suspected the child’s ties to Hamas and that the money paid for his narration could potentially be used for terrorism purposes. However, the production company failed to disclose the child’s Hamas connections to the BBC.
UKLFI has reported the BBC to the Counter-Terrorism Police under Section 17 of the Terrorism Act 2000, which states:
“A person commits an offense if—
(a) he enters into or becomes concerned in an arrangement as a result of which money or other property is made available or is to be made available to another, and
(b) he knows or has reasonable cause to suspect that it will or may be used for the purposes of terrorism.”
In addition, according to Section 19 of the Terrorism Act 2000, if a person “(a) believes or suspects that another person has committed an offense under any of sections 15 to 18, and (b) bases his belief or suspicion on information which comes to his attention … in the course of a trade, profession or business, or … employment …” they have a duty to disclose this to the police.” It is an offense not to disclose it.
Since it appears unlikely that the BBC reported their suspicions to the police, UKLFI has also reported the BBC for this Section 19 offense.
UKLFI has also reported the two producers from Hoyo Films to the police for various potential terrorism offenses, including providing money with reasonable cause to suspect it may be used for terrorism. Additionally, UKLFI has raised concerns about possible breaches of Sections 2 and/or 3 of the Fraud Act 2006, which prohibit fraud by false representation and failing to disclose information, respectively.
Caroline Turner, director of UKLFI commented: “It is appalling that the BBC thought it could treat anti-terrorism legislation with such disdain, and ignore its obligations to report its suspicions to the police. Not only did the BBC fail to carry out its own investigations into the family connections of the child, as it has admitted in its statement, but it also apparently failed to inform the police of its suspicions, enabling the police to investigate, as it was obliged to do.
