Calls for boycotting BBC over inaccurate report on Egypt

CAIRO – 27 February 2018: The Egypt State Information Service (SIS) called on Egyptian officials and intellectual sectors on Tuesday to boycott BBC until it issues an official apology over publishing an inaccurate report on forced disappearance in Egypt, according to an official statement.

In a recent statement by SIS, it demanded the BBC to "seriously and swiftly take into consideration the remarks and criticism mentioned in the SIS earlier statement and take all necessary professional and administrative measures to correct the errors and violations included in its report."

The SIS called for an immediate apology from the British broadcast in the same manner the documentary report aired the gross professional error regarding the Egyptian citizen Zubeida Ibrahim, considered an "absolute falsification and fabrication."

“SIS Chairperson Diaa Rashwan has called on all Egyptian officials and intellectual groups to boycott the BBC network and refrain from giving statements to the British network and making interviews with its correspondents and reporters until an official apology is offered,” the statement read.

“The appearance of citizen Zubeida, in the manner shown, and her talking on “Kol Youm” (Everyday) TV show presented by the renowned anchor Amr Adib in a family atmosphere entirely disproves the credibility of the BBC report on her forced disappearance and torture,” the statement added.

The statement assured that the called for boycott does not include or breach the BBC’s media and legal rights, which are enjoyed by foreign media organizations in Egypt, including the rights to access information and statements.

Sources to Egypt Today revealed that Rashwan had assigned some SIS’s employees to take necessary procedures and follow up on his decisions regarding the BBC case, in accordance with the foreign reporters’ regulations in Egypt.


BBC's enforced disappearance hoax revealed

On Monday, the Egypt State Information Service (SIS) issued a statement on the appearance of Zubeida Ibrahim, who was mistakenly reported by BBC as an enforced disappearance victim in Egypt, on a talk show aired on ON E, criticizing the unprofessional reporting and allegations made by the English network on the situation in Egypt.

SIS said that Ibrahim’s interview with ON E entirely disproves the credibility of the BBC report on her enforced disappearance and torture. The statement stressed the authenticity of the remarks and criticism mentioned in the SIS earlier statement in response to the BBC report regarding the other issues it included, biased attitudes and personal impressions adopted by the report writer towards Egypt.

“The appearance of citizen Zubeida emphasizes what was mentioned in the SIS earlier statement regarding the BBC report’s lack of internationally recognized journalistic and media professional norms and standards as well as the rules and regulations adopted by the BBC,” according to SIS.

The Monday statement demanded the BBC to “issue an immediate apology in the same manner the BBC documentary report was aired and published for the gross professional error regarding citizen Zubeida, to the extent of absolute falsification and fabrication.”

It also asked the English network to take into consideration the remarks mentioned in the SIS earlier statement and take all necessary professional and administrative measures to correct the errors and violations included in its report.