The British broadcaster committed a "major breach" of broadcasting rules by failing to disclose that the narrator of a documentary about the Gaza conflict was the offspring of a Hamas official, according to UK media regulator Ofcom.
An investigation by the media regulator into the programme Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone has determined that the film was "significantly deceptive".
The BBC's director general had already issued an apology, stating there had been "a major oversight in relation to accuracy".
Ofcom has ordered the broadcaster to air a evening statement about its findings.
"As this represents a major infringement of our regulations, we are directing the BBC to broadcast a message of our determinations against it on the BBC's second channel at 21:00, with a date to be finalised," it said.
'Possibility to Undermine Credibility'
The authority's report declared: "Our probe found that the film's failure to disclose that the narrator's parent served in a post in the Hamas-administered government was substantially inaccurate.
"It meant that the viewers did not have vital facts which may have been very significant to their judgment of the voice and the content he shared.
"Confidence is at the center of the bond between a media organization and its audience, especially for a national broadcasting corporation such as the British Broadcasting Corporation.
"This oversight had the possibility to erode the exceptionally strong degrees of trust that viewers would have put in a factual film from the broadcaster about the conflict in Gaza."
The programme was removed from the BBC's streaming service in last February after the presenter's familial connections came to light, and in the month of July an broadcaster's internal assessment concluded it violated the organization's content policies on truthfulness.
A BBC spokesperson said: "The regulator's decision is in accordance with the results of the corporation's inquiry, that there was a significant failing in the film in relation to the BBC's Editorial Guidelines on factual correctness, which corresponds to Rule 2.2 of the regulator's media standards.
"We have apologised for this and we agree with the authority's determination in full. We will adhere to the sanction as soon as the schedule and wording are finalised."
