Syrian government cancels BBC’s accreditation
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The Syrian government has cancelled the BBC’s media accreditation over what it called “biased and misleading reports”.
Syrian Ministry of Information said, in a statement, that the BBC failed to adhere to “professional standards”.
The BBC published a report last month on what it said were “direct links” between the trade of captagon and the family of President Bashar al-Assad, as well as the Syrian military.
The ministry said that the BBC has occasionally provided “subjective and fake information” since Syria’s civil war started in 2011, without referring to the Captagon report.
The BBC defended itself saying that it provided impartial, independent journalism.
“We speak to people across the political spectrum to establish the facts,” BBC spokesperson said.
Syria’s Captagon trade emerged during the war years. The U.S. Treasury Department has estimated that the Syrian government generates more than $5 million annually from this business.
The narcotic trade was one of the key issues discussed by Arab state officials with Damascus during recent rapprochement talks.
US President Joe Biden signed a massive defense spending bill into law on Dec. 23, 2022 that included a proposal to combat trade of Captagon in the areas controlled by the Syrian government.
Cancellation of international media accreditation is rare in Syria, although it is ranked 175 out of 180 on the press freedom index by Reporters’ Without Borders.