THE BBC justifies its decision to issue a court summons against Bristol Friends of Gaza supporters camped out on the lawn outside its Bristol offices by accusing them of an “illegal occupation.”

In fact, the demonstrators are taking their peaceful direct action because of BBC collaboration with Israel’s thoroughly illegal occupation of Palestinian land.

The BBC has a reputation, not totally unjustified, for reporting international affairs in an objective way.

Yes, of course, it reflects the outlook and interests of Britain’s ruling class, as every state’s national broadcaster does, but the BBC has generally avoided the most squalid reality distortions in portraying Establishment views.

But, when it comes to Tel Aviv’s military occupation of the West Bank, its illegal colonisation of Palestinian land and frequent orgies of bloodletting against civilians, the BBC is even less critical than some Israeli media outlets.

It is incapable of allowing critics of Israel to describe the ongoing ethnic cleansing as illegal without countering that “Israel disputes this,” as though a criminal’s refusal to accept the reality of his wrongdoing renders the crime less substantive.

International law denies the right of an occupying power to colonise occupied land and this has been confirmed consistently by the United Nations.

However, Israel takes advantage of its supreme regional military capacity, backed by the US superpower, to occupy land belonging not only to Palestinians but to its neighbours Syria and Lebanon as well and to proclaim this as annexed territory.

The situation has recently deteriorated still further with top editorial decisions taken to ignore protests against BBC pro-zionist bias.

Having drawn widespread criticism for failing to cover a recent thousands-strong demonstration in London opposing Israeli slaughter in Gaza, the BBC eventually uploaded a brief Channel 4 news report on its website.

To make things easier for the BBC, protesters gathered in their hundreds outside Broadcasting House to register their disquiet over our national broadcaster’s refusal to tell the truth about Palestine.

The BBC could not find the resources to cover the protest and keep the viewers in Britain informed — the people who fund the corporation through our licence fees.

Musician Brian Eno drew attention this month to a decline in the “famous impartiality” of the BBC, highlighting coverage of the appalling murders of three Israeli teenagers near Hebron.

Far from this being a one-off on the West Bank, children are killed “with monotonous regularity. 

And not only is there widespread killing but imprisonment and torture and day-to-day harassment and brutality. This goes on all the time,” said Eno.

His is one voice among many thousands who have detected a grotesque lopsidedness in coverage of Palestinian/Israeli matters and are no longer prepared to remain silent.

Just as trade unionists note that the capitalist media reports unions as “demanding” while bosses always “offer,” so Israel’s murderous barrages are always “a response” to a Palestinian provocation.

The Bristol Friends of Gaza occupation of the BBC lawn on Whiteladies Road may indeed be swept away by the majesty of the law.

But it should encourage other backers of truthful journalism and Palestinians’ human rights to take a stand in their support.

The ever-growing global demand for boycott, disinvestment and sanctions against Israel must go hand in hand with the demand that our national broadcaster should stop trying to pull the wool over our eyes.