Acclaimed Irish author Sally Rooney is facing potential legal repercussions in the United Kingdom after publicly stating her intention to donate book and adaptation earnings to Palestine Action, a group recently proscribed as a terrorist organization by the UK government, Sky News reported on Monday.
Downing Street has issued a stern warning, stating that providing support to a proscribed organization is a serious offense under the Terrorism Act.
In a weekend column for the Irish Times, Rooney defiantly declared that if backing the group "makes me a 'supporter of terror' under UK law, so be it." The 34-year-old, whose novels “Normal People” and “Conversations With Friends” have been adapted into popular BBC series, added that she will use her public platform and the proceeds from her work to continue supporting Palestine Action and "direct action against genocide in whatever way I can."
The UK officially banned Palestine Action on July 5, after an overwhelming vote in the House of Commons passed the measure 385 to 26. The House of Lords subsequently endorsed the decision, and a legal attempt to halt the ban was rejected by the Court of Appeal.
The prime minister's official spokesman emphasized the gravity of the law, stating, according to Sky News, "Support for a proscribed organization is an offense under the Terrorism Act and obviously the police will, as they have set out, they will obviously implement the law within the law as you'd expect."
The spokesman added that the group was proscribed "based on security advice following serious attacks the group has committed."
The government announced its intention to ban Palestine Action following an incident where activists from the group breached an air force base in southern England. During the incident, two aircraft were defaced with red paint, resulting in an estimated £7 million in damages.
The group also previously defaced a painting of Lord Balfour at Trinity College Cambridge, spraying the portrait with red paint and slashing it.
In another incident, Palestine Action members stole two busts of Israel’s first President, Chaim Weizmann, from a glass cabinet at Manchester University.