Novelist Sally Rooney says she will support Palestine Action despite ban

Author Sally Rooney says she will continue to support Palestine Action, despite the group being proscribed as a terrorist organisation in the UK.

The award-winning Irish novelist said she intends to use the earnings of her work and her public platform to "go on supporting Palestine Action and direct action against genocide".

Writing in the Irish Times, she said "if this makes me a supporter of terror under UK law, so be it".

Her remarks come as Home Secretary Yvette Cooper again defended the proscription of Palestine Action, saying it is more than "a regular protest group known for occasional stunts".

Palestine Action is a British pro-Palestinian direct action group that was proscribed as a terrorist organisation by the government in July.

Their activities have predominantly targeted arms companies since the start of the current war in Gaza.

Israel has long rejected accusations of genocide, but leading Israeli and global human rights organisations have argued that the country's conduct in the war in Gaza constitutes genocide against the Palestinian population.

The war was triggered by Hamas's 7 October 2023 attack on Israel, which killed about 1,200 people and saw 251 others taken hostage.

Israel's offensive has since killed more than 61,000 Palestinians, according to figures from the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, which the UN considers reliable.