Internal emails reveal changes resulted directly from complaints by pro-Israel activists, with the museum and its director subsequently misleading prominent criticsThe British Museum removed the terms “Palestine”, “Palestinian” and “Israelite occupation” from its displays in direct response to months of lobbying in 2024, a Middle East Eye investigation has found.
In February 2026, the museum defended its decision to alter some displays, saying that “audience testing” showed the term “Palestine” to be “no longer meaningful”.
However, a new disclosure by the museum to MEE, in response to a freedom of information request, confirms that no such testing was carried out, nor any visitor research related to the term “Palestine”.
The museum’s various conflicting responses appear to obscure the full extent of changes made.
In fact, the changes to displays dating as far as 7,500 BCE came after private and public complaints by organisations and high-profile individuals supportive of Israel between October and December 2024, museum emails show.
