Cowardly? BBC anchor blasted for saying IDF ‘happily’ kills children disables her Twitter account

The BBC had issued a statement of ‘apology’ for the questioning that was “not phrased well” while insisting that its reporting has been impartial.

By World Israel News Staff

BBC journalist Anjana Gadgil, who was reprimanded for her outrageous statements about the Jewish state, has closed her Twitter account after the broadcaster issued somewhat of an apology for her outrageous remarks.

In an interview Tuesday evening with former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett, Gadgil claimed that the IDF intentionally murders Palestinian children.

“The Israeli military are calling this a ‘military operation,’ but we know that young people are being killed, four of them under 18,” Anjana Gadgil told Bennett. “Is that really what the military set out to do, to kill people between the ages of 16 and 18?”

When Bennett challenged her claim, she doubled down, saying, “Terrorists, but children. The Israeli forces are happy to kill children.”

On Wednesday, the BBC issued a statement of ‘apology’ while insisting that its reporting has been impartial.

“Across the BBC’s platforms—including the BBC News channel—these events have been covered in an impartial and robust way. The United Nations raised the issue of the impact of the operation in Jenin on children and young people,” the BBC stated.

“While this was a legitimate subject to examine in the interview, we apologize that the language used in this line of questioning was not phrased well and was inappropriate.”

Marie van der Zyl, president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, tweeted that she was pleased that the BBC apologized “for the clearly unacceptable language which was used in their interview with Naftali Bennett.”

‘Blood libel’

In a letter to the BBC following the interview, Rabbi Menachem Margolin, chairman of the European Jewish Association, slammed the broadcaster.

“An assertion such as ‘the Israeli forces are happy to kill children’ cannot possibly meet the standards of journalistic probity that the BBC is world-renowned for. This blatant untruth, heavily loaded with emotion, and sinisterly reminiscent of the blood libel that has plagued Jewish communities over millennia, was broadcast to a potential audience of millions and articulated by BBC News anchor Anjana Gadjil,” Margolin wrote.

“Happy to kill children? What a disgusting accusation to make about a country whose armed forces go to enormous lengths to avoid civilian casualties. These children? They are 17- and 18-year-old armed terrorists out to kill Israeli soldiers and civilians! Sir, this cannot stand. Such a blatant lie is not befitting of journalism, much less the code of conduct of the BBC. We urge you to reprimand Anjana Gadjil and retract the assertion as soon as possible.”

“I see Anjana Gadgil from @BBCNews @BBCWorld has disabled her account. Guess she didn’t like being called out for her outrageous interview with PM Bennett,” tweeted international human rights lawyer Arsen Ostrovsky.