Big Brother pulled an episode amid an anti-Semitism row after a housemate wore a T-shit allegedly portraying genocidal views, before re-uploading it.
Contestant Ali Bromley, a forensic psychologist, wore the controversial T-shirt depicting a map of Israel as a watermelon.
The symbol, widely associated with anti-Israel sentiment, went on to spark claims that ITV was allowing ‘genocidal’ views to be shared among the masses.
The Campaign Against Antisemitism complained to Ofcom, saying: ‘How is this becoming the norm?’
It added: ‘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.
Big Brother housemate Ali Bromley caused a stir after wearing a T-shirt depicting Israel as a watermelon on TV
The fruit is linked with Palestinian activism because their colours – red, black, white and green – match the colours of the Palestinian flag
The episode was pulled off ITVX on Tuesday night, before being re-uploaded to the streaming service on Wednesday. Pictured: Ali Bromley
‘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.’
Bromley was spotted wearing the T-shirt in the garden of the Big Brother house, leaving fans of the show in shock as they branded the act ‘vile’ and ‘despicable’.
The episode was pulled off ITVX on Tuesday night, before being re-uploaded to the streaming service on Wednesday.
A spokesperson for Big Brother told the MailOnline: ‘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.
‘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.’
ITVX also took to X, formerly Twitter today, saying: ‘Thank you for reaching out to us today. Hope you are well.
‘Regarding your question about last night’s Big Brother show, we have some news, it will be available to view later this evening.
‘We apologise for the inconvenience caused by this but the wait will be worth it.’
The fruit is linked with Palestinian activism because their colours – red, black, white and green – match the colours of the Palestinian flag.
Before entering the Big Brother house, Ali said she was looking forward to ‘just being away and thrown into a totally new environment, completely different to anything I’ve done before, completely different to anything I’ll ever do in the future’.
ITVX took to X to apologise for any offence caused after Bromley was seen in the controversial T-shirt
The symbol, widely associated with anti-Israel sentiment, went on to spark claims that ITV was allowing ‘genocidal’ views to be shared among the masses
She said: ‘I think the fact that I’m a forensic psychologist will surprise people.
‘It’s not your everyday, typical nine-to-five office job. It’s quite difficult, it’s quite demanding, and I work in highly stressful situations.’
She added: ‘But I’m quite chilled and probably don’t look like the sort of person who can hold my own – in a prison, for example.’
But this is not the first time the ongoing conflict in the Middle East has caused tension in the Big Brother house.
Last week, Big Brother narrator Marcus Bentley announced: ‘Daze and Khaled are in the bedroom discussing Palestine.’
The production team was accused of prejudices as the duo were in reality discussing Israel and the wider Middle East when Daze said: ‘Actually, if you, like, boil it down, no one should be killed like this. It’s, like, not OK, regardless of the situation’.
MailOnline has approached Channel 4 and ITV for comment.