8 BBC Journalists write letter to Al-Jazeera, accuse BBC of unfair reportage on Israel-Palestine
London: Eight BBC journalists based in the United Kingdom wrote a 2,300-word letter to Al Jazeera, accusing their employer of a "double standard" in its reporting on Israel and Palestine. The letter claimed that the BBC has failed to accurately convey the situation, particularly regarding human rights abuses in Gaza, through omission and a lack of critical engagement with Israel's claims.
While the BBC is accused of naming Israeli victims and interviewing affected families, the letter emphasized a lack of humanizing coverage for Palestinian civilians. The journalists argued that Palestinians are often asked to condemn Hamas, while guests defending Israel are not equally asked to condemn the actions of the Israeli government.
The letter questioned when the number of Palestinian casualties would be considered high enough for the BBC's editorial stance to change, urging the organization to better reflect and defer to the evidence-based findings of unbiased humanitarian organizations.
According to Al Jazeera, the journalists highlighted that the BBC's coverage began to humanize Palestinian civilians more in recent weeks as civilian deaths increased, suggesting that this shift came too late and indicated undue influence from the positions of the UK and US governments.
In response to the letter, a BBC spokesperson denied the allegations, stating that when interviewing the Israeli government, Hamas, Palestinian representatives, or other leaders, the BBC aims to be robust, challenging, and hold power to account.
The letter did not disclose the identities of the eight BBC journalists who penned it.
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Andhra govt issues NOC to Vedanta Ltd to drill 20 onshore oil, gas wells
Amaravati (PTI): The Andhra Pradesh government has issued a conditional 'No Objection Certificate' to Vedanta Ltd (Cairn Oil & Gas Division) for drilling 20 onshore wells in Krishna district.
According to a recent Government Order, Vedanta Limited (Cairn Oil & Gas Division) has submitted a representation, stating that their firm was awarded the work of development of the Onshore Oil and Gas Field under the Discovered Small Field (DSF) Policy, 2018.
Further, they requested to grant a No Objection Certificate (NOC) for drilling wells at 35 locations in the block located in various village limits for Onshore Oil and Gas Development and Production, from the Water Resources Department of Andhra Pradesh, as the Bandar Canal passes through the centre of the proposed block.
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“After careful examination of the matter, the government hereby issues ‘No Objection Certificate’ to M/s Vedanta Limited (Cairn Oil & Gas Division), Mumbai, for drilling 20 Nos. of wells at the locations mentioned at para (2) above subject to the terms & conditions as mentioned at para (3) above,” the order said.
The Engineer-in-Chief (Irrigation), Water Resources Department, Vijayawada, the Chief Engineer, Krishna Delta System, Vijayawada, and the Collector of Krishna District shall take necessary action accordingly, it added.
According to the order, the NoC can be issued only from the irrigation point of view and is purely temporary in nature. The applicant shall obtain all required permissions from the departments concerned before commencing operations, as per norms.
No water shall be drawn from irrigation canal sources such as the Bandar Canal, KDS canal network, drainage network, ponds, reservoirs, or any other surface-water source, it said.
Cairn Oil & Gas, a division of Vedanta Limited, is India’s largest private oil and gas exploration production company, contributing approximately a quarter of the country’s domestic crude production, with a vision to increase this contribution to 50 per cent through sustainable and responsible practices.
