BBC Report on Ukraine Refugees Omits Pro-Israel Information
by Hadar Sela
A report headlined “How many refugees have fled Ukraine and where are they going?” was published on the BBC News website’s “World”’ page on the morning of March 3, and has been updated several times since then.
Under the sub-heading “Which countries are Ukraine’s refugees fleeing to?” readers are informed that:
Refugees are crossing to neighbouring countries to the west, such as Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Hungary and Moldova. Smaller numbers have gone to Russia and Belarus. […]
Almost 90,000 people have moved on from these countries to others in Europe.
Readers also find a section headed “What help are countries providing?” followed by another titled “How is the UK helping Ukrainian refugees?”:
Nearly a week before that article was published, the Jewish Agency had announced the opening of immigration processing stations in four countries bordering Ukraine in order to assist Ukrainian Jews wishing to relocate to Israel:
“The Jewish Agency is also standing by to immediately increase [the number of] these stations, as needed,” it said.
The organization said it was also preparing to temporarily house prospective Ukrainian immigrants in Poland, Moldova, Romania and Hungary as they await transport to Israel, with funding from “The Jewish Federations of North America, Keren Hayesod and other donors from around the world.”
Many thousands of people have already contacted the organization about immigrating to Israel in the past few days amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a Jewish Agency official told The Times of Israel….
Some 200,000 people in Ukraine are eligible for immigration to Israel, according to officials. Those arriving in the country will also be recognized as refugees fleeing a war zone, and hence entitled to a government grant.
Some 2,000 people have already made their way to Israel and three flights carrying new immigrants from Ukraine, including 100 orphans, arrived on May 6. According to one report, “'[Ministry of Immigration and Absorption] teams will provide each immigrant with an extended benefits package and will arrange temporary housing in hotels across the country,’ the Jewish Agency said.”
Notably, the BBC’s report on refugees from Ukraine and where they are going does not provide worldwide audiences with any information about the Israeli aspect of that story. When a story is pro-Israel, it seems that the BBC does not take notice. When Israel can be attacked, however, the BBC is often on the front lines.
Hadar Sela is the co-editor of CAMERA UK — an affiliate of the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (CAMERA), where a version of this article first appeared.