The BBC's complaints unit has ruled its own staff were wrong to label Hamas a "terror group" on air.

The broadcaster's Executive Complaints Unit (ECU) said it was "inappropriate" for a presenter on its news channel to use the term in a programme aired on June 15.

The ECU said the BBC itself does not label organisations as “terrorist” or with the word “terror” to ensure accuracy and impartiality and only reports on designations made by official bodies or other third parties.

In Britain, Hamas is a proscribed terrorist group.

The body said the incident had been “reported to the management of BBC News and discussed with the editorial team responsible”.

The BBC has ruled its own staff were wrong to label Hamas a 'terror group' on air

The ruling has poured fuel on an ongoing debate over how the BBC labels Hamas.

The broadcaster previously came under fire in the aftermath of the October 7 attacks after it refused to label Hamas as a terrorist group - citing that to do so would be at odds with their editorial guidelines.

Then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said at the time: “This is not a time for equivocation, we should call it out for what it is."

David Cameron backed up his then-leader, adding: “Maybe it’s a moment actually for the BBC to ask itself again, shall we describe these people as terrorists? They are terrorists.”

Then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said at the time: 'This is not a time for equivocation, we should call it out for what it is'

The Israeli Government has also repeatedly called on the broadcaster to use the term “terrorist” when reporting on Hamas.

The Israeli ambassador to the UK, Tzipi Hotovely criticised the BBC’s decision not to label Hamas as terrorists, suggesting that it meant the public broadcaster was “taking sides.”

The BBC's long-time world affairs editor John Simpson defended the corporation, saying: “The BBC’s job is to place the facts before its audience and let them decide what they think, honestly and without ranting.

“That’s why, in Britain and throughout the world, nearly half a billion people watch, listen to and read us.

Israeli ambassador Tzipi Hotovely criticised the BBC’s decision not to label Hamas as terrorists

"There’s always someone who would like us to rant. Sorry, it’s not what we do.”

Commenting on the recent ECU ruling, former BBC Television director Danny Cohen said: “Licence-fee payers will be appalled that their money is being wasted trying to protect the reputation of murdering extremists.

“The BBC has stubbornly refused to recognise that Hamas are a terrorist organisation since the horrific atrocities of Oct 7, and now its editorial complaints unit is clamping down on presenters who make that simple statement of fact.

“The ECU is clearly unfit for purpose. The BBC can no longer be allowed to mark its own homework.”

And last month, the BBC became embroiled in an impartiality row after Mr Simpson was accused of sharing a "debunked" study which claimed that more journalists in Gaza have died than in both world wars combined.

The 81-year-old shared a post to his hundreds of thousands of social media followers which included disputed research by Brown University.

The widely-contested study claims that more reporters in Gaza have died since the beginning of the war than in seven conflicts, including both world wars, combined.

GB News has approached the BBC for comment.