Hollywood actors, film directors, writers and musicians have signed a letter that criticizes Israel’s move to label six major Palestinian charities as terrorist groups.
The letter describes Israel’s decision as "an unprecedented and blanket attack on Palestinian human rights defenders’, as reported by Sky News.
Among the signatories were stars Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon, Tilda Swinton, Clair Foy, director Ken Loach, musician Jarvis Cocker, the band Massive Attack and authors Philip Pullman, Colm Tobin and Irvine Welsh.
The letter further states "the designation targets six of the most eminent Palestinian human rights defenders engaged in critical human rights work and cover all aspects of civil society in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.” Together, the six groups provide legal aid to Palestinians and documents alleged human rights abuses by Israel, Hamas and Palestinian Authority, as well as promotes the rights of women, farmworkers and children.
However, Israeli has accused them of channeling donor aid to militants and of being linked to a leftist organization that has a history of planning and carrying out attacks in Israel.
The groups that Israel has labelled as terrorist groups are Addameer, Al-Haq, Defense for Children International-Palestine, the Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees and the Union of Agricultural Work Committees.
Recently in the United Kingdom, its Home Secretary Priti Patel was reportedly planning to introduce a law in the British parliament that will ban Hamas, and classify it as a terrorist organization.