The US has been bombing Yemen, with British support. And this is all because Yemen’s Houthi rebels have been resisting Israel’s genocide in Gaza by targeting ships heading to the apartheid state. However, the BBC has been minimising or omitting that vital context.
Any mention, BBC? No?
The BBC has long covered for Israeli war criminals when it comes to their mass murder of Palestinians. But by failing to inform the public properly about what’s happening in Yemen, it’s helping to manufacture consent for a war that Israel and its US enablers have long sought to wage against Iran. This media complicity, along with Western nations’ ongoing attempts to crack down on criticism of Israel’s genocide, is a significant threat to humanity.
In a 17 March video from the BBC talking about the US attacks on Yemen, there seemed to be no mention at all of Israel, Gaza, or Palestine, despite Israel’s genocidal assault on Palestinians being the root cause of Yemeni actions in the Red Sea. The BBC video did, however, manage to mention Iran numerous times, along with Bashar al-Assad and Hassan Nasrallah.
Minimising context that should be front and centre
On 15 March, a BBC article online did slightly better. It led with US president Donald Trump’s propaganda, but if you were still reading by paragraph four you would learn that the Houthis planned to “continue to target Red Sea shipping until Israel lifted its blockade of Gaza”. At this point (or any point) in the article, it might be worth mentioning that Israeli occupation forces have murdered “at least 61,709 people, including 17,492 children” and injured “more than 111,588 people” in Gaza since October 2023. But no, because that might give you too much sympathy for what the Houthis were doing.
The article did mention again, however, that the Houthis “are acting in support of the Palestinians in the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza” and “are targeting ships only linked to Israel, the US or the UK”. And it pointed out the very limited impact of Houthi actions (especially in comparison to the thousands of Palestinian children Israel has killed in Gaza):
Since November 2023, the Houthis have targeted dozens of merchant vessels with missiles, drones and small boat attacks in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. They have sunk two vessels, seized a third, and killed four crew members.
It also said:
the Houthis were unwavering in their response, saying the aggression would not diminish their support for Palestinians.
Still nothing extra? Just a bit more? No?
Another article on 16 March, meanwhile, made no mention of Israel until half way through, when it copied and pasted the above information.
Another piece on 17 March led with Trump propaganda, and the headline “Trump warns Iran will face ‘dire’ consequences unless Houthi attacks stop”. Iran was clearly the focus, and the BBC only inserted the above information referring to Israel just before the end.
At no point in any of the articles was there a mention of Israel’s mass murder of tens of thousands of people in Gaza, or the mass destruction of the occupied territory. The BBC was fully aware that this was the Houthis’ key reason for targeting ships, but it chose to avoid that information.
The elephant in the room
In its reporting on the US attacks on Yemen, which the British government facilitated from the now notorious genocide-enabling base of RAF Akrotiri, the BBC did little to hide its role as a state propaganda outlet. In a weak nod to journalistic professionalism, it mentioned the Houthis’ reason for intervening in the Red Sea. But it also either omitted key information or hid it down where most people don’t read.
It may be the case that BBC reporters and/or their bosses are just incompetent or clueless. But it’s much more likely that they are actively shilling for Israel, the US, and/or the British state. Because genocide is a pretty immense elephant in the room to miss, and any journalist with integrity would feel the moral and professional duty to talk about it.
Featured image via the Canary
