The Big Brother housemates had no idea that ITV edited and reuploaded an episode last month to erase housemate Ali’s Wear The Peace T-shirt – a symbol of solidarity with Palestine amid the ongoing war.
The episode from October 22 was taken down from streaming service ITVX, and viewers noticed the change when it was reuploaded, creating huge controversy.
The symbol, which is in the colours of the Palestinian flag, has become synonymous with the pro-Palestine movement amid the ongoing war, which has killed more than 42,000 people in Gaza since the Hamas attacks in Israel on October 7.
It first emerged in 1967 after the Six-Day War, after public displays of the Palestinian flag became a criminal offense in Gaza and the West Bank, according to Time.
While there was immense backlash over the editing, including 552 complaints to Ofcom over the episode featuring the T-shirt, housemate Khaled has now revealed the contestants had no idea about the outrage.
The 23-year-old model, who grew up as a refugee and has family in Lebanon and Palestine, had been open about his plans to send money if he’d won to people in those countries in need.
He also thought being on Big Brother would prove to be ‘a great platform to discuss it from the point of view of someone that grew up in the west and has Middle Eastern heritage’.
Talking about the edit over an issue close to his heart, Khaled told Metro that he – nor Ali – would have known about it.
He said: ‘We weren’t aware of anything in there. You’re fully cut out from the outside world. Don’t know what’s going on, who’s looking good, who’s looking bad. Literally, you’re just living your life.’
He added that he doesn’t know ‘too much about the situation’, but said: ‘For me, personally, I’m just always going to be biased towards helping Lebanon and Palestine, helping the people who need support, the kids, women and children.’
Khaled also addressed a moment that caused outrage with fellow housemate Nathan, who had accused him of not speaking enough about his background as a refugee and the ongoing war.
Nathan had said Khaled was ‘holding back their true self’ during a task, explaining: ‘I struggled with this one but I’m unfortunately going to go for Khaled.
‘When we’re having a conversation, he maybe spends too long looking at the camera and not at the person sitting across from him.
‘Khaled, I assume, will have a lot of opinions on things that are happening around the world that are maybe close to home for him but I thought he would be more vocal in his thoughts about it.
‘When we spoke about politics and current affairs in the world in Israel or Lebanon, not everyone has to be an outspoken t**t like me and say what they’re thinking and that’s fine, but he’s holding back on his true self by not speaking about it because he’s thinking about the outside potentially.’
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‘This is a bit mad, to say that I’m not supporting my people,’ Khaled replied from another room at the time, hearing Nathan’s comments.
He’s now told Metro he agrees Nathan’s comments were ‘unfair’, saying: ‘I spoke to everyone about it, I spoke to Lily, I spoke to Rosie, literally everyone in the house about it bar him, and then for him to say that I wasn’t speaking about it… that wasn’t right in that moment.’
He went on: ‘But we did talk about after, and I did want to keep the bridge open for him to discuss it with me, not to make it a taboo subject, because we need to communicate about anything, especially sensitive topics, that’s definitely what we should communicate on, so instead of building barriers between them, we should break them down and begin to understand each other.’
Ali’s T-shirt from the episode that was edited appeared to be Wear The Peace’s Freedom Melon Tee, which donates 100% of profits (around £8 after manufacturing costs) to charity Pious Projects of America, with funds used by the on-ground team in Gaza to supply food, water, medical aid and other necessities.
The back of the T-shirt also reads: ‘100% of profits donated to pious projects for aid to humans in Gaza.’
Wear The Peace have since spoken out about the erasure, saying: ‘Everything p***es them off except for the genocide.
‘Ali Bromley, who wore our Freedom Melon tee on Big Brother UK, has had her shirt edited out after the show removed the episode and added it back with the edit.
‘For everyone who has our Freedom Melon design, wear it with pride. They don’t want you showcasing your solidarity with the rightful homeowners. Free Palestine.’
The removal of Ali’s T-shirt came after it sparked an antisemitism row, with charity Campaign Against Antisemitism submitting a complaint to Ofcom after pointing out that the watermelon design was in the shape of Israel on a map.
They shared a statement on social media, writing: ‘How is this becoming the norm?
‘A Big Brother (@bbuk) ‘housemate’ was seen wearing a T-shirt depicting the map of Israel as a watermelon—a symbol widely associated with anti-Israel sentiment.
‘This graphic has caused significant distress among the British Jewish community, who regard it as a genocidal message similar to the slogan ‘From the River to the Sea’ which calls for the elimination of the world’s only Jewish state.
‘How did the show’s staff allow this shirt to be worn, let alone broadcast it on national television?
‘This incident represents a serious violation of broadcasting standards. We have submitted a complaint to @Ofcom.’
Metro confirmed that the Big Brother episode and the spin-off Late and Live were edited to remove the image, as ITV provided a statement.
A Big Brother spokesperson said: ‘All Housemate items are checked by our production team before they go into the Big Brother House to ensure they comply with the Rules and compliance requirements.
‘Big Brother does not allow any personal items into the House that could be deemed harmful.
‘We regret that the implications of this particular item of clothing were not fully understood in our bag checks or prior to broadcast of last night’s show.
‘We apologise to any viewers who have been offended by the broadcast and assure viewers that Big Brother was unaware of the implications of the image.  Â
‘The item of clothing has been removed from the House. The Housemate has been spoken to and they have expressed that they are unaware of the implications and did not wish to cause any harm or offence.
‘Any offensive messaging associated with the image does not reflect the values or beliefs of Big Brother.’
The editing sparked also controversy from viewers, with many questioning why other aspects of the show, such as Nathan’s political comments, Ryan’s ‘anti-woke’ views, and Marcello’s allegedly misogynistic comments are still allowed.
Before entering the show, Ali, originally from Leicester, said she believes the way she expresses her opinions could ‘rub someone up the wrong way’.
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She said: ‘If someone does something I think maybe isn’t kind, or could have been a bit better thought through, I have this thing where I tend to tell people. I can be quite direct.
‘It doesn’t always land well – that could well get me nominated.’
She’s now set to make it to the final of Big Brother on Friday, after Sarah and Thomas joined Khaled, Baked Potato and Lily in being evicted from the house.
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Big Brother airs weekdays at 9pm on ITV2.
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