BBC Scandal: 'Highly Respected' Imam Praised Hamas Attack on Israel!

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Critics raised their concerns with the BBC after a presenter introduced a controversial British Islamic scholar and jurist as a “highly respected” religious figure, who also sparked outrage for several inflammatory statements in the past, including one where he supported the October 7 attacks by Hamas against Israel that killed 1,200 hostages and took hundreds hostage.

In an interview aired last August on BBC Radio London, British journalist Asad Ahmad introduced Imam Haitham al-Haddad, a British Muslim religious scholar and television presenter of Palestinian origin, as a “highly respected” figure. 

Ahmad interviewed al-Haddad about far-right violence and unrest in the UK, especially in light of the recent far-right riots that rocked the country following false accusations that a Muslim asylum seeker was responsible for the 2024 Southport mass stabbing that took the lives of three people, including a six-year-old and a seven-year-old girl.

During the interview, al-Haddad sharply criticized the media and politicians in the UK, accusing them of using the British Muslim community as a scapegoat.

“When certain media outlets and politicians target Muslims, making the Muslim community a scapegoat, it fuels resentment,” al-Haddad said, adding that Muslims are often portrayed as “the enemies within.”

He also stressed the importance of engaging with far-right organizations, framing it as an opportunity for British Muslims to share their values and correct misconceptions.

“We Muslims are confident. We are not afraid of anyone, we are not afraid of any debate, but give us the opportunity to present ourselves as we are,” al-Haddad asserted during the interview.

Even though he was portrayed during his interview with the BBC as a figure of conciliation, many critics pointed out al-Haddad's previous inflammatory remarks on several topics and issues.

Notably, when Hamas launched their deadly attack against Israel last October 7th, where 1,200 Israelis were brutally murdered and hundreds of Israelis and other nationalities were taken hostage, al-Haddad wrote a post on Facebook supporting the attack.

“O Allah, support the people of truth in Gaza, Al-Qudus, and Palestine – they have managed to cause confusion to the enemy’s calculations with a new tactic. Grant them victory and aid them against their oppressors in their struggle for Justice and Truth.” al-Haddad wrote, adding that “the occupation has proven to be weaker than a spider’s web.”

He concluded his post by praying for Hamas’s victory against Israel, saying, “Allah will grant victory to those who grant Him victory.”

Aside from his antisemitic remarks, al-Haddad also made several misogynistic and homophobic statements. For instance, he claimed that Islamically approved female circumcision "is better for the husband" and "a virtue or honor for women.”

Al-Haddad also described homosexuality as a "criminal act" and, according to the BBC, he argued that "god hates homosexuals.”

Many critics worry that by presenting al-Haddad as a “highly respected” figure, the BBC legitimized his extremist views, primarily because the broadcaster provided him with a platform without properly acknowledging or addressing his history of making inflammatory statements. 

Thus, the BBC went against its editorial guidelines on impartiality, which state that "particular viewpoints [of contributors] should be made available to the audience, when relevant to the context."

In 2018, Sara Khan, who was previously the head of the UK’s Commission for Countering Extremism, described his views as “misogynistic, racist and homophobic,” adding that “they promote a supremacist 'us versus them' worldview that wrongly makes Muslims feel that they can't be fully British.”

The National Secular Society (NSS) also raised concerns with the BBC over the interview, with its human rights lead, Alejandro Sanchez, noting, “It is for the BBC to decide whether to platform extremists like Haitham al-Haddad.”

"But impartiality demands fundamentalist views are properly acknowledged. This did not happen in BBC Radio London's interview." Sanchez added.

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