Asylum seeker in ‘fawning’ BBC documentary about refugees raped 13-year-old girl seven times
A refugee who featured in a BBC documentary about the difficulties of being an asylum seeker has been convicted for raping a teenager seven times.
Omar Badreddin appeared on Newsnight in 2016 as he and his brother Mohamed made an 11-month journey from Syria to Newcastle.
The brothers have been jailed for a total of 38-and-a-half years.
Mohamed, 23, was convicted of six counts of rape and one of assault by penetration and was sentenced to 13 years in prison, while his brother Omar, 26, was convicted of five counts of rape and sentenced to 18 years in jail.
The pair raped and abused the 13-year-old girl between August 2018 and April 2019.
Omar raped the girl at least seven times and threatened to kill her or take her to another country if she did not comply, the Telegraph reports.
She said that her attackers “tortured” her and made her life a “living nightmare”.
The Badreddin brothers featured in a 2016 documentary “To hell and back: the story of a Syrian family given refuge in the UK” when the BBC became aware of criminal proceedings against Omar who was accused of the sexual assault of a 14-year-old-girl.
He was found not guilty that same year, despite there being several reported issues with translations in the trial and “inconsistencies with the evidence against him”.
Following the trial, former Newsnight journalist Katie Razall interviewed the Badreddin family.
During the interview, Omar said: “I felt she [the accuser] didn’t want foreigners in this country and that is why she made up the whole story.”
Razzall did not appear to challenge this.
In a follow-up BBC article, she said: “The family told me ever since their son’s arrest, they have felt humiliated and dishonoured, even though they were certain their son was innocent.
“In Syrian culture, this type of accusation is so damaging to their reputation, that even though Omar Badreddin has been cleared, they fear the stigma of it will stick.”
Neil O’Brien MP, a Conservative former minister has blasted the BBC for their “remarkably poor editorial judgment”.
“The BBC showed remarkably poor editorial judgment in commissioning this fawning documentary, more interested in airing an unchallenged accusation that a 14-year-old girl was a racist who had made up a rape accusation,” he told The Telegraph.
“Given that they smeared a young girl as sexually experienced and failed to challenge the racism accusations made by someone who turns out to be a dangerous sexual predator, you would hope there would be a bit more contrition, but I don’t see any signs so far that any lessons are being learned from this shocking, appalling case.
A BBC spokesman said: “In 2015 and 2016, Newsnight followed the story of the Badreddin family, who were Syrian refugees who had settled in the UK. During 2016, their son Omar was tried for sexual assault and found not guilty.
“Two years afterwards, in 2018 and 2019, Omar Badreddin and his brother Mohamed committed multiple counts of rape. They were found guilty and were jailed on 1 March 2024.
“The BBC reported this. In any situation, the BBC can only report on the facts as they stand at the time, which is what we did in 2016. The Badreddins’ subsequent crimes are appalling, and we express our sincere sympathies to their victim.”