Basement Films and Channel 4 team of Nevine Mabro and Ramita Navai pick up the Foreign Affairs Journalism prize at the British Journalism Awards 2025. Picture: Press Gazette/Adam Duke Photography
Documentary maker Ramita Navai said it felt like “vindication” after Gaza: Doctors Under Attack won the Foreign Journalism prize at the British Journalism Awards.
The Basement Films production was originally due to be shown on the BBC but after delaying airing the story for six months, the corporation dropped the project in June because “this material risked creating a perception of partiality”.
The documentary, which was ultimately broadcast by Channel 4 in July, aired allegations that the Israeli military systematically targeted doctors and medical facilities during the conflict in Gaza.
The British Journalism Awards judges said: “We have all seen a lot of Gaza coverage but had not seen anything this shocking. It was the most powerful eyewitness account of all this year’s entries, a tribute to the courage of the journalists and organisation involved, and an unforgettable film.”
The BBC’s decision to drop the documentary came after public statements by Basement Films founder Ben de Pear and by journalist on the project Navai who had become frustrated at continuing delays on airing a story they saw as urgently in the public interest.
Speaking on Radio 4’s Today programme, Navai described Israel as “a rogue state that’s committing war crimes and ethnic cleansing, and mass-murdering Palestinians”.
BBC approach to Gaza: Doctors Under Attack was ‘deeply disappointing and deeply upsetting’
After picking up the prize at the British Journalism Awards Navai told Press Gazette: “It feels like vindication. It feels particularly good because the film that Channel 4 broadcast and the BBC refused to show is pretty much exactly the same film.
“The whole process with the BBC was deeply disappointing and deeply upsetting. Just when I was really questioning journalism I saw journalism at its best which was Channel 4 sweeping in and acting really fast and working to higher standards.”
She added: “What was particularly frustrating was the BBC were sitting on this film, even though they had told us the film should be shown as soon as possible in the public interest. They showed absolutely no care for our contributors.
“This was an investigation into alleged and possible war crimes so it was deeply irresponsible.
“The BBC then lied about the reasons why they didn’t show the film and they threw me under the bus and they blamed me. I am evidence I was not the reason they dropped the film which is what they said.”
Asked about what impact the film had, she said: “Israel still acts with impunity but I think a film like this can be really important when it comes to any possible evidence when it comes to cases, that is what we have been told and what we strive towards.”
Journalists working on the project comprised: Ramita Navai, Karim Shah, Ben de Pear, Menna Hijazi, Jaber Badwan, Mel Quigley and Leah Gowns.
Navai said: “It’s really important that we acknowledge our amazing Palestinian team, we could not have done this without them. Every time they left their homes to film for us they risked their lives and we were terrified that we would lose them, but both are still alive and that is just luck because we have lost so many colleagues.”
Talking about the killing of more than 200 journalists in Gaza by the Israeli military, she said: “It has been disappointing to see that we haven’t covered their deaths in the way we would have if these were, say, Ukrainian journalists. That has been deeply disappointing,
“These awards do mean something when you can acknowledge local journalists who are doing the best work in the most dangerous place to be a journalist right now.”
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