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The BBC has defended its reporting on the war in Gaza after facing criticism from the White House over coverage of a recent deadly incident near an aid distribution center in Rafah.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt alleged that the BBC had to “correct and take down” a report following updates to the headline about the number of casualties. The BBC, however, refuted this, stating that the article was never removed and that its headlines were routinely updated throughout the day to reflect the latest figures from various sources—standard editorial practice.
Speaking at a press briefing on Tuesday, Leavitt claimed the Biden administration was verifying the facts surrounding the incident, suggesting that unlike some media outlets, they don’t take Hamas statements at face value. She criticized the BBC for running multiple headlines such as “Israeli tank kills 26,” “Israeli gunfire kills 31,” and “Red Cross says 21 people were killed in an aid incident,” and then allegedly retracting the story altogether.
Leavitt also referenced a screenshot from social media, holding up a document that displayed various BBC headlines and a live blog update that read, “Claim graphic video is linked to aid distribution site in Gaza is incorrect.” The image, posted on X (formerly Twitter), was accompanied by a user’s claim that it was “an admission that it was all a lie.”
In response, the BBC clarified that the quoted line was from a BBC Verify report addressing a misleading video circulating online—not the main article about the Rafah incident. The broadcaster emphasized that no story was deleted and stood firmly behind its reporting.
“The claim that the BBC took down a story after reviewing footage is completely false,” said a BBC spokesperson. “We did not remove any story and we stand by our journalism.”
Leavitt concluded her remarks by urging journalists to verify information before reporting, to help curb the spread of misinformation.
The BBC has stated that its news reports and headlines regarding Sunday’s incident at an aid distribution center in Gaza were regularly updated throughout the day as new casualty figures emerged from various sources.
The broadcaster explained that all updates were clearly attributed—from the initial report of 15 deaths provided by medical personnel, to a later figure of 31 from the Hamas-run health ministry, and eventually the Red Cross’s statement noting “at least 21” fatalities at their field hospital. The BBC described this as standard practice for fast-developing news events.
Separately, the BBC clarified that a BBC Verify article published on Monday found a viral social media video claiming to show the aid center incident was in fact unrelated. This footage, the BBC said, was never aired on its news channels and did not influence its coverage of the story. The broadcaster criticized attempts to conflate the two as misleading.
The BBC emphasized the importance of accurate reporting on Gaza, stressing the difficulties posed by the lack of access for international journalists. The corporation called on the White House to support demands for immediate media access to the region.
Meanwhile, the BBC has faced criticism over its broader coverage of the Israel-Hamas war. Earlier this year, controversy arose over a documentary titled Gaza: How To Survive A Warzone, which was later removed from BBC iPlayer after it was revealed that the child narrator, Abdullah, is the son of Ayman Alyazouri, Hamas’s former deputy agriculture minister.
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