• BBC was accused of bias over Trump, Gaza and trans issues.
• US had blamed BBC for being a “propaganda machine”
• BBC board stunned by Davie’s resignation.

The BBC Director General Tim Davie and Head of News Deborah Turness resigned on Sunday amid mounting criticism over perceived bias at the British broadcaster, including questions over the editing of a US President Donald Trump speech in a recent documentary.

The BBC had been under mounting pressure after an internal report by a former standards adviser was leaked to the Daily Telegraph newspaper, which cited failings in its coverage of the Israel-Hamas war, trans issues and a speech made by Trump.

The White House had recently denounced the broadcaster as a “propaganda machine” after its flagship Panorama documentary programme was found to have edited two parts of Trump’s speech together so he appeared to encourage the Capitol Hill riots of January 2021.

Davie, who has led the British Broadcasting Corporation since 2020, said he had decided to step down after “reflecting on the very intense personal and professional demands of managing this role over many years in these febrile times”.

Turness, the CEO of BBC News, also quit.

Respected abroad, questioned for news judgment

Widely respected around the world, the BBC has in recent years been accused of failing to maintain its commitment to impartial news, struggling to navigate the deeply polarised political and social environment.

The corporation, which is funded by a licence fee paid by all television-watching households, also comes under intense scrutiny from some national newspapers and social media, which object to its funding model and perceived liberal stance.

In recent years it had struggled to contain scandals over the opinion on immigration of its most highly paid sports presenter, Gary Lineker, which briefly led to a walk-out by staff, while it was condemned for showing a punk-rap duo Bob Vylan chanting against the Israeli military at Glastonbury.

It also pulled a documentary about Gaza earlier this year because it featured the son of a deputy minister in the Hamas-run government.

In the Panorama documentary, Trump was shown telling his supporters that “we’re going to walk down to the Capitol” and that they would “fight like hell”, a comment he made in a different part of his speech.

He had actually followed up that remark about walking to the Capitol by saying they would “cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women”.

Trump’s press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, described the BBC as “100% fake news” in an interview published on Friday.

Turness denies bias claims

British culture minister Lisa Nandy thanked Davie for his work as director general, saying he had led the broadcaster through a period of significant change.

A person familiar with the situation said Davie’s decision had left the BBC board stunned, and he would stay on for the next few months while a replacement was found.

Davie said in “these increasingly polarised times” the BBC was of unique value, helping to build a healthy society and thriving creative sector, arguing it should be championed, not weaponised.

But he said it was not perfect, and while the recent scandal was not the only reason for his departure, it had been a factor, and he had to take ultimate responsibility.

The BBC, which has to negotiate a new charter with the government in 2027 to guarantee its future finances, had appeared to struggle to respond to the recent run of negative headlines.

The chairman, Samir Shah, had been expected to apologise to lawmakers for the furore on Monday.

Turness said in an email to staff that while mistakes had been made, “I want to be absolutely clear, recent allegations that BBC News is institutionally biased are wrong.”

Malaysian authorities have recovered at least seven bodies after a boat carrying migrants capsized near the Thai border, a maritime agency official said on Sunday.

Officials believe the boat was carrying undocumented migrants who departed from Myanmar, part of a group of at least 300 people that had split between several vessels.

The boat that capsized near Thailand’s Tarutao Island and just north of Malaysia’s island resort of Langkawi was carrying some 90 people, Kedah state police chief Adzli Abu Shah told Malaysian media.

Romli Mustafa, director of the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency in the northern states of Kedah and Perlis, said in a statement that three survivors were found on Sunday in the waters around Langkawi as well as six bodies, taking the overall death toll to seven.

At least 13 people have been rescued alive.

Romli said the bodies recovered on Sunday were of a girl and five women, without disclosing their nationality or ethnicity.

A body found on Saturday is believed to be of a woman from Myanmar’s persecuted Rohingya minority, Adzli told the Bernama national news agency.

The search and rescue effort ended for the day and will resume on Monday, Romli added, saying it was possible more survivors or victims could be found at sea.

The boat likely went down three days ago, according to the state police chief.

Two other vessels, believed to be carrying some of the group of 300 migrants who had departed from Myanmar, have also been reported missing, Adzli was quoted as saying by the Free Malaysia Today news website.

He said preliminary investigations showed that the group boarded a large vessel that carried them into waters close to Malaysia.

“As they neared the border they were instructed to transfer onto three smaller boats, each carrying around 100 people,” he told Bernama.

“We have requested the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency and the Marine Police to launch search and rescue operations and to look for the other missing boats,” Adzli said, quoted by the New Straits Times.

The Malaysian police force did not respond to AFP’s requests for comment.

Relatively affluent Malaysia is home to millions of migrants from poorer parts of Asia, many of them undocumented, working in industries including construction and agriculture.

But the crossings, facilitated by human trafficking syndicates, are often hazardous, leading to boats capsizing.

“Cross-border syndicates are now increasingly active in exploiting migrants by making them victims of human trafficking using high-risk sea routes,” Romli said.

Syndicates charge up to $3,500 per person for passage into the country, Malaysian media said.

In one of the worst months, in December 2021, more than 20 migrants drowned in several incidents off the Malaysian coast.

At least four people were killed and two others injured when a helicopter carrying employees of a Russian military factory crashed in Russia’s southern Dagestan region.

The incident, caught on camera, showed the Ka-226 light utility helicopter attempting to land on a beach when its tail struck the ground, causing the tail rotor to snap off.

The pilot then tried to regain altitude; however, he lost control, and the helicopter spiraled uncontrollably before crashing into a residential building near the village of Achi-Su, killing all four on board.

Local media reported that Achalo Magomedov, deputy general director for construction and transport support at the Kizlyar Electromechanical Plant, was among the dead.

Footage from the scene showed firefighters battling the blaze that engulfed the building, reducing it to rubble.

Another video captured the moment of impact, with the helicopter tearing through the roof before erupting in flames.

Reports said the helicopter was carrying employees of the Kizlyar Electromechanical Plant, a company sanctioned by the European Union for producing aircraft components used by the Russian military.

The EU stated the company was “responsible for materially supporting actions that undermine or threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and independence of Ukraine.”

The deadly crash occurred as Russia intensified its aerial assaults on Ukraine, launching a barrage of drones and missiles overnight that killed at least three people and damaged major energy infrastructure in three regions.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had launched over 450 drones and 45 missiles in the latest wave of attacks.