The BBC has been ranked third in the Simon Wiesenthal Center's "Global Antisemitism Top Ten List" for 2021, Jewish journal Algemeiner has reported.
The head of the center, Rabbi Marvin Hier, told the Daily Mail that while people might assume the organization would put neo-Nazi groups on the list, "the BBC is there because when a globally recognized organization allows antisemitism to creep into its reporting, it makes it all the more insidious and dangerous.
"The decision to place the BBC at No. 3 came after months of intense debate and discussion," he said.
Hier stated that the organization believes the BBC has been "guilty of several incidences of antisemitism during the past year." He also addressed the network's incorrect reporting on antisemitic attacks and lack of accountability for their condoning of antisemitism.
He mentioned the antisemitic attack in London's Oxford Street last month where a group of men made Nazi salutes and chanted anti-Israel slogans at a bus filled with Jewish teenagers celebrating Hanukkah.
“The BBC falsely reported that a victim on the bus used an anti-Muslim slur. But what was heard on tape was a distressed Jewish man speaking in Hebrew appealing for help.”
The Times reported that "BBC sources said that it had consulted Hebrew speakers before concluding that the words were English." Despite audio evidence, the BBC has refused to correct its report.
The center condemned former BBC journalist Tala Halawa, who tweeted antisemitic statements such as "Hitler was right."
Hier also cited the tweet made by senior BBC producer Alaa Daraghme captioned: ‘An Israeli settler ramming a Palestinian man near the Lions’ Gate.’
"In fact, the car drove onto the pavement after an attempt by Palestinians to lynch the Jewish driver, who lost control of the vehicle", Hier said. The original tweet had been posted when there was "some confusion" over the incident, a BBC source said. Daraghme later clarified what happened in another tweet.
In response to being ranked third on the list, a BBC spokesman has responded by saying, "Antisemitism is abhorrent. The BBC strives to serve the Jewish community, and all communities across our country, fairly with accurate and impartial reporting."