Latest news with #FerasKilani
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
BBC reporters say IDF detained them in Syrian buffer zone for seven hours
Feras Kilani, a BBC Arabic journalist, claimed that he and his team were detained, strip-searched and interrogated by the IDF. A team of seven BBC staff members claimed they were detained, strip-searched and interrogated by the IDF in the Syrian buffer zone in a report published Thursday. Feras Kilani, a BBC Arabic journalist, said that on May 9, he and his team, comprised of himself, two Iraqi BBC staff, one Syrian BBC cameraman, and three Syrian freelancers, left Damascus with the intention of moving toward the Syrian buffer zone. The team was filming near a United Nations observation post by al-Rafeed when they were informed a nearby IDF unit had inquired about them, being told they were a BBC crew. Kilani and his team later drove toward Quneitra and saw Israeli tanks and soldiers nearby. One member of the group showed his BBC ID to IDF soldiers watching through binoculars from a nearby tower. The crew began filming, but were quickly approached and surrounded by IDF soldiers and told to place their camera on the ground. Kilani claimed that after sending a message to his BBC colleagues in London that the military had stopped them, their phones and equipment were confiscated, and 'things escalated unexpectedly quickly.' Additional soldiers arrived to search the BBC team's vehicle, and the group was then escorted to the crossing point between Quneitra and the Golan Heights. There, the IDF reviewed the team's footage while they say in their car, 'while one pointed his rifle at my head from metres away.' Two hours later, Kilani was asked to talk on the phone to a man who 'spoke broken Arabic' and asked why they were filming IDF positions, to which Kilani explained that he was a British BBC journalist and explained his work. After an additional hour, IDF security personnel arrived with blindfolds and zip ties, and an officer led Kilani to a private room, telling him that he would be treated 'better' than his team, without blindfolds or zip ties. 'I was in shock. I asked why they were doing this when they knew we were a BBC crew. He said he wanted to help get us out quickly and that we had to comply with their instructions,' Kilani wrote. Over the course of two hours, each member of the team was individually strip-searched in the private room and interrogated, including personal questions, and were returned with their hands still bound but no longer blindfolded. During the interrogations, IDF soldiers examined the team's phones and laptops, deleting many photos, including personal ones. An officer then threatened them with 'worse consequences' if they approached forces from the Syrian side, adding that they would be tracked down if any hidden footage was published. After roughly seven hours, the team was led by two IDF vehicles over one mile outside Quneitra, and the soldiers threw the phones back before leaving. 'Lost in the dark with no signal, no internet, and no idea where we were, we kept driving until we reached a small village,' Kilani wrote, adding that the group received directions from a group of local children who warned that 'a wrong turn could draw Israeli fire.' According to Kilani, it took them 10 minutes to find the road and an additional 45 minutes to reach Damascus. The BBC has complained to the IDF about what happened, but the military has not responded.
RNZ News
4 days ago
- General
- RNZ News
BBC journalists held at gunpoint and strip-searched by Israeli military, broadcaster says
By Lewis Wiseman , ABC Israeli military vehicles deploy at Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip. Photo: AFP/JACK GUEZ A team of seven BBC journalists and staff claim to have been held at gunpoint, blindfolded and strip searched by the Israeli Defence Force in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. The BBC said its crew, which included staff members and three freelancers, were stopped while filming at a checkpoint in Quneitra, inside the buffer zone between Israel and Syria. "BBC News Arabic correspondent Feras Kilani, along with three other BBC staff members and three freelance colleagues, were detained for seven hours and held at gunpoint by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF)," a BBC statement said. "The team have described how they were tied up, blindfolded, strip searched, interrogated and threatened." BBC Arabic special correspondent Feras Kilani was a part of the crew and described his experience on the BBC website. He said minutes after starting to film at the checkpoint, four IDF soldiers "pointed their rifles at our heads and ordered us to place the camera on the side of the road." From there, he claimed he and his crew were escorted by the soldiers through a barrier and into the city of Quneitra where the soldiers reviewed the footage, all while keeping rifles aimed at their heads. An Israeli soldier walks near the United Nations Quneitra crossing between the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights and Syria on January 5, 2025. Photo: AFP/JALAA MAREY The BBC said electronic devices were taken from the team and material was deleted. After hours passed, Kelani said he was asked "why we were filming Israeli military positions" by a person not known to him on a phone call made by one of the soldiers. He said he was then separated from his team and told by a lead IDF officer that he had to comply with their instructions. The first of those demands, he claimed, was to remove all his clothes except for his underwear for a search. Kelani said soldiers "inspected even inside my underwear, both front and back, searched my clothes, then told me to put them back on and started interrogating me." After the interrogation, Kelani claimed he was led back outside where he saw "the horrific scene of my team members, tied up and blindfolded". He claimed he asked officers to release them, but they were each taken inside for a strip search and questioning. After seven hours of detention by the IDF, Kelani claimed he and his team were told if they approached the frontier from the Syrian side again there would be "worse consequences". He said the crew were then dropped two kilometres outside the city, given back their electronic devices and left to find their way back. The BBC has said it "strongly objects to the treatment of our staff and freelancers in this way." "Despite making clear to the soldiers on multiple occasions they were working for the BBC, the behaviour they were subjected to is wholly unacceptable," the BBC statement said. The broadcaster said it has registered a complaint with the Israeli military over the incident but has not had a response. The ABC has contacted the IDF for comment but has not yet received a response. - ABC
ABC News
5 days ago
- General
- ABC News
BBC claims a team of its journalists and crew held at gunpoint by Israeli Defence Force in Syria
A team of seven BBC journalists and staff claim to have been held at gunpoint, blindfolded and strip searched by the Israeli Defence Force in the Golan Heights. The BBC said its crew, which included three staff members and three freelancers, were stopped at a checkpoint in Quneitra, inside the buffer zone between Israel and Syria, while they were filming on May 9. "BBC News Arabic correspondent Feras Kilani, along with three other BBC staff members and three freelance colleagues, were detained for seven hours and held at gunpoint by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF)," a BBC statement said. BBC Arabic special correspondent Feras Kilani was a part of the crew and described his experience on the BBC website. He said that minutes after starting to film at the checkpoint, four IDF soldiers "pointed their rifles at our heads and ordered us to place the camera on the side of the road." From there, he claims he and his crew were escorted by the soldiers through a barrier and into the city of Quneitra where the soldiers reviewed the footage, all while keeping rifles aimed at their heads. The BBC said electronic devices were taken from the team and material was deleted. After hours passed, Mr Kelani says he was asked "why we were filming Israeli military positions" by an unknown person on a phone call made by one of the soldiers. He said he was then separated from his team and told by a lead IDF officer that he had to comply with their instructions. The first of those demands, he claims, was to remove all his clothes except for his underwear for a search. Mr Kelani said soldiers "inspected even inside my underwear, both front and back, searched my clothes, then told me to put them back on and started interrogating me." After the interrogation, Mr Kelani claims he was led back outside where he saw "the horrific scene of my team members, tied up and blindfolded". He claims he asked officers to release them, but they were each taken inside for a strip search and questioning. After seven hours of detention by the IDF, Mr Kelani claims he and his team were told if they approached the frontier from the Syrian side again there would be "worse consequences". He says that the crew were then dropped two kilometres outside the city, given back their electronic devices and left to find their way back. The BBC has said said it "strongly objects to the treatment of our staff and freelancers in this way." "Despite making clear to the soldiers on multiple occasions they were working for the BBC, the behaviour they were subjected to is wholly unacceptable," the BBC statement said. The broadcaster said it has registered a complaint with the Israeli military over the incident but has not had a response. The ABC has contacted the IDF for comment but has not yet received a response.
Arab News
5 days ago
- Business
- Arab News
BBC journalists detained at gunpoint in southern Syria
LONDON: Israeli Defense Forces detained, blindfolded, tied up and strip-searched at gunpoint seven members of a BBC Arabic crew as they approached the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, a BBC journalist said on Thursday. Feras Kilani, a British special correspondent for BBC Arabic, said he was among the team detained for seven hours at a checkpoint near the barrier of Quneitra city, located within the buffer zone between Syria and Israel. 'A minute after we started filming in the area, a white car approached from the other side of the checkpoint. Four Israeli soldiers got out of the car and surrounded us. They pointed their rifles at our heads and ordered us to place the camera on the side of the road,' wrote Kilani in a BBC article. The crew's phones and laptops were inspected, with some files deleted, and their vehicle was thoroughly searched as they were led into a room, tied up and blindfolded. Kilani's team included two Iraqi BBC staff members and four Syrians, among them three freelancers and a cameraman. 'I pleaded to the officer to release them, and he promised to do so after the interrogations. They were taken one by one to the same room for strip search and questioning.' Kilani said the team was also threatened before their release in the evening: 'The officer threatened us with worse consequences if we approached the frontier from the Syrian side again and said that they know everything about us and would track us down if any hidden or un-deleted photo was ever published.' In a statement, the BBC said it had filed a complaint with the Israeli military over the incident but had yet to receive a response. 'The BBC strongly objects to the treatment of our staff and freelancers in this way. Despite making clear to the soldiers on multiple occasions they were working for the BBC, the behavior they were subjected to is wholly unacceptable,' the broadcaster said.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
BBC Says IDF Detained Several Reporters at Gun Point and Strip-Searched Them
The BBC on Thursday said that Israel Defense Forces held several of its reporters at gunpoint, detained them for seven hours and strip searched them while they were filming a report in southern Syria. BBC correspondent Feras Kilani and two other BBC staffers, as well as three freelancers were involved in the incident, which the network said occurred on May 9 while they were reporting on the buffer zone in southwestern Syria. That's the region occupied by Israel since Dec. 8, the day dictator Bashar al-Assad was overthrown by rebel groups. According to BBC, the reporters 'were tied up, blindfolded, strip searched, interrogated and threatened. Their electronic devices were also taken from them and material was deleted.' Neither IDF nor the Israeli government have commented publicly on the matter. In a statement Friday, BBC said it has filed a formal complaint with IDF and said it 'strongly objects to the treatment of our staff and freelancers in this way. Read the full statement below: 'On Friday 9 May whilst filming in Southern Syria, BBC News Arabic correspondent Feras Kilani, along with two other BBC staff members and four freelance colleagues, were detained for seven hours and held at gunpoint by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The team have described how they were tied up, blindfolded, strip searched, interrogated and threatened. Their electronic devices were also taken from them and material was deleted. The BBC strongly objects to the treatment of our staff and freelancers in this way. Despite making clear to the soldiers on multiple occasions they were working for the BBC, the behaviour they were subjected to is wholly unacceptable. We have registered a complaint with the Israeli military but are yet to receive a response.' The post BBC Says IDF Detained Several Reporters at Gun Point and Strip-Searched Them appeared first on TheWrap.
