LONDON: British actress Tracy-Ann Oberman has been forced to pay compensation and apologize after being found to have falsely accused a politician of antisemitism.
She claimed that Dr. Philip Proudfoot, a founding member of the Northern Independence Party, had a “Jew block list” on Twitter on April 4, 2021, after he used an online tool to limit accounts targeting him with abuse for his views on Palestine.
The tool, a “block chain,” automatically blocks followers of accounts a user blocks manually, to limit “pile-ons,” where people are inundated with messages, usually to harass them.
Proudfoot, who is also an anthropologist and specialist on the Middle East, had blocked an account Oberman followed and used a block chain tool to limit harassment by trolls. He contacted her to inform her of this after her tweet about a “Jew block list.”
The actress, who has over 100,000 followers on the social media platform, tweeted an apology on Tuesday morning, saying: “I accept that Dr Proudfoot has at no time had a Jew block list and apologise for stating otherwise.
“I made a mistake and appreciate that my comments were hurtful. I have therefore deleted my tweet, (and) agreed to pay substantial damages and legal costs.”
In a statement, Proudfoot said: “I am a humanitarian researcher. I’ve seen the horrors of war in Lebanon, Syria and Yemen. It is for this reason I am a supporter of the struggle for human rights in Palestine. And it is for this reason I am appalled and disgusted by antisemitism, and all forms of prejudice.”
Proudfoot’s solicitor Zillur Rahman said: “Antisemitism is a serious problem in our society and it is unfortunate that some people like Philip, who show solidarity with the Palestinians in their struggle for freedom from Israel’s oppression, have been falsely accused of antisemitism, which can have a chilling effect on free speech against injustices and human rights violations.”
