The Daily Mail suggested, in two separate articles, that the charity Interpal was a terrorist organization that funded a “hate festival” play portraying the murder of Jews.
Now, the Mail‘s publisher is paying £120,000 (~$150,000) to Interpal for those claims.
The articles, published on August 2 and August 15, 2018, “falsely alleged that Interpal had supported a “hate festival” in Gaza in which children acted out the murder of Jewish people,” according to a press release from Interpal’s lawyers at Carter Ruck. “In fact, however – and as the Mail and MailOnline have now fully accepted – while Interpal (among many others) had donated to the festival, it certainly did not fund or support the play (which formed a tiny part of a very large event) and had no prior knowledge of it. On the contrary; as soon as they became aware of the play, the Trustees unequivocally condemned both the play and the appalling activities it depicted.”
The press release notes that one of the articles said the U.S. listed Interpal as a “specially deisgnated global terrorist organisation,” but the designation was made in 2003 and “strongly contested by Interpal and the Trustees,” and the Charity Commission didn’t remove its charitable status.
The Carter Ruck press release quoted Interpal Chairman of the Trustees Ibrahim Hewitt as saying in part, “The timing and amount of the settlement are particularly noteworthy within the context of the ongoing wider agenda to politicise humanitarian aid to Palestinians. We hope that this significant success will encourage commentators and others to take seriously their responsibility for reporting unbiased, accurate information to the general public and service providers.”
Interpal’s attorneys at Carter Ruck declined to comment beyond the press release.
The Daily Mail also published an April 26 correction that reads:
“An article dated 15 August claimed that Interpal, a charity supporting Palestinians, funded a ‘hate festival’ in which children acted out the murder of Jews. In fact, while Interpal donated to the festival, it did not fund or support the play and the Trustees of Interpal unequivocally condemned the activities the play depicted. It was not our intention to suggest that the Trustees promote or condone anti-Semitism or attacks on Jews. The article also referred to Interpal having been listed as a “specially designated global terrorist organisation” by the United States. We are happy to make clear that this designation, which took place in 2003, has always been strongly contested by Interpal and its Trustees, and Interpal continues to operate lawfully within the aegis of the Charity Commission. The Trustees assure us, and we accept, that neither Interpal, nor its Trustees, have ever been involved in or provided support for terrorist activity of any kind. We apologise to the Trustees for any distress caused.”
Hat Tip: Guardian