Daily Mail pays $150,000 and apologises to Interpal over ‘hate festival’ allegations
London (QNN)- The publisher of the Daily Mail and MailOnline has paid £120,000 in damages plus costs to the UK-based humanitarian charity Interpal after the paper published “false terror and extremism allegations”.
In a court settlement disclosed on Thursday, Associated Newspapers admitted to publishing two articles on 2 and 15 August 2018 that included libellous claims against Interpal.
The publisher agreed to pay about $152,000 (£120,000) in libel damages to the trustees of Interpal, as well as the charity’s legal costs.
The 15 August article also referred to Interpal having been listed in the United States as a “specially designated global terrorist organisation”, thus leaving readers with the clear impression that Interpal is a terrorist organisation and that its trustees are thereby to be considered terrorists.
In apologising unreservedly to the trustees, MailOnline accepted that “neither Interpal, nor its Trustees, have ever been involved in or provided support for terrorist activity of any kind.”
Two full apologies have been published on MailOnline, on the MailOnline App, and prominently in the print edition of the Daily Mail.
Ibrahim Hewitt, who is the Chairman of Interpal’s board of trustees, said to Middle east Monitor, “We welcome the decision taken by Associated Newspapers both to apologise formally and pay a suitable sum in damages, in recognition of the gravity of the falsehoods that were published.” The timing and amount of the settlement, he added, 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.”
Founded in 1994, Interpal is registered in the United Kingdom with the Charity Commission. It is a non-political, non-profit organisation that works with international funding partners and partners on the ground to provide relief and development aid to Palestinians in need. The charity assists in the provision of essential humanitarian relief, education, health and medical services, as well as community development projects.
