The BBC has been forced to apologise after releasing a video which claims that Jews spit on Christians in a “holiday ritual”. The broadcaster sparked outrage after its Arabic service shared a video with an article captioned “Sukkot: Spitting and Assault on Christians and Harassment of Muslims on the Jewish Holiday”.

Despite the footage being released in 2023, the BBC has only recently issued a formal response. The title of the video claimed that observant Jews marked Sukkot, a religious holiday, by spitting on Christians in Israel. It was only following a complaint from the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis that the title was changed. It then read: “Some observant Jews consider spitting on Christians a holiday ritual.”

The BBC has since changed the title of the article. (Image: Getty)

The BBC has now acknowledged the error: “We apologise for the errors and thank you for your patience in waiting for this reply/confirmation of corrections that were made in October 2023.”

In the video, ultra-Orthodox Jews were filmed spitting on the ground next to Christians who were marching to Jerusalem carrying a wooden cross. A reporter at Israel’s Haaretz filmed the scene, which shows the pilgrims starting the procession through the limestone labyrinth of the Old City.

The walk is believed to have been the route that Jesus embarked on prior to his crucifixion.

Ultra-Orthodox Jews were filmed passing by the procession during Sukkot, where a number of them spat on the ground.

In a separate BBC article published via its Arabic service on the anniversary of 9/11, Jews were linked to the terror attacks. The piece was titled: “The story of suicide bombers throughout history: from the fanatical Jews, through Assassins, to the Jihadists.”

In the article, the militant Jewish group Sicarii dating back Roman times were described as the earliest example of suicide attackers. They were then linked to modern jihadist tactics, The Telegraph reports.

The Sicarii took over Jerusalem during the 70AD Jewish revolt before they retreated to Masada.

The Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis complained to the BBC that they did not carry out suicide attacks, like the article implies, while they did commit mass suicide at Masada.

“Since the Sicarii’s attacks weren’t suicidal, and their mass suicide was not an attack, they do not fit a narrative about suicide attacks at all. Yet, they are the only ones labelled ‘fanatics’ and ‘extremists’ in the entire article,” the complaint read.

The BBC acknowledged the complaint, responding:“Although the Sicarii may have preferred suicide to capture, there was no evidence of their using suicide as a means of an attack.”

The headline was then changed to “The Story of Suicide Bombers Throughout History: From Assassins to Jihadists”.

A BBC spokesman told The Telegraph: “The BBC takes all complaints seriously and we have a robust process in place.

“We are committed to investigating complaints and responding to complainants swiftly. We apologise for the delay in these particular cases.

“When mistakes are made, we acknowledge them and make the appropriate corrections.”