Counselling body apologises for ‘genocide in Gaza’ comment in membership magazine
The British Association of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies also cancels Islamophobia session after extreme anti-Zionist sentiments of several panellists revealed
The British Association of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies has apologised to its members for the inclusion of the phrase ‘genocide taking place in Gaza’ in an article on Islamophobia.
The piece was published in the professional body’s February 2025 issue of magazine ‘CBT’ (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy).
In the apology, seen by Jewish News, Tommy McIlravey, chief executive of the association, said the inclusion “was the subject of a number of complaints from both members of BABCP and wider interest groups”, adding that the term ‘genocide’ “remains contested and is the subject of an ongoing legal case in the International Court of Justice.”
On behalf of the organisation, McIlravey apologised “for any distress caused by the unqualified use of the contested term”, going on to say that: “What is beyond argument is that Islamophobia and antisemitism are both scourges upon our society. They affect our members, friends, colleagues, neighbours and clients.”
Accompanying the apology was the publication of a column about antisemitism and mental health, written by psychologist Dr. Sandi Mann, in which the link is made between anti-Israel hate and antisemitism.
The Association also last week cancelled a training session on Islamophobia after several of the invited speakers were discovered to have published or shared highly problematic extreme anti-Zionist social media posts.
In a social media post on Twitter/X, Dr. Tarek Younis of Middlesex University said he was “proud to have contributed” to the application of law firm Riverway to de-proscribe Hamas from the list of banned organisations in the UK under the Terrorism Act 2000.
In a now deleted post, Younis also wrote: “Our work isn’t done until all Zionists are removed from our institutions and shamed, alongside all racists, into nothingness.”
Professor Ghazala Mir of Leeds University shared social media posts which included the claim that Israel is “intentionally destroying as many Palestinians it can”.
In a now deleted post, Mir also shared a claim that “Zionists purposely raise their children to be hateful little demons”.
Following a complaint from UK Lawyers for Israel, an independent investigator commissioned by the BABCP found that “a number of posts did meet the threshold of being antisemitic. As a result, and in line with our governance and organisational commitments, we have made the decision not to proceed with appointment of the proposed Facilitators to deliver training to BABCP Members.”
Jewish News understands that the session on Islamophobia is being re-scheduled by BABCP, with different speakers.
Caroline Turner, director of UKLFI said: “We are grateful that BABCP has cancelled the training session and taken additional measures to prevent the spread of antisemitism within their own organisation.”
Speaking to Jewish News, Dr. Sandi Mann praised the BABCP for “showing strength” in publishing her article “without edit or amendment. My article is very, very clearly explaining the link between all these anti Israel hate attacks, antisemitism and the marches. They’ve done a good job. They’ve addressed the issues.”
She added: “In my article, I’ve said the Jewish community has felt invalidated by not being able to define our own experiences of antisemitism. We’re being told what it is and what it isn’t. And here they are giving me a voice to say exactly what we say IS antisemitism. They’re taking us seriously. They’re listening. They’re caring about the Jewish community. And I think it’s very reassuring. It gives me faith as the NHS and academia can be very difficult places to be for Jews at the moment.”
According to UKLFI, The British Association of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies has vowed to “no longer allow the unqualified use of contested terms – such as ‘genocide’ in relation to the events in Gaza – to appear in its publications, and plans to bring forward antisemitism training for CBT therapists.”
- Jewish News has contacted Middlesex University for comment on Dr. Younis’ support for a UK-proscribed terror organisation having its terror designation removed
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