London, UK – Islamic Relief Worldwide has received a public apology and financial compensation from British news channel GB News following the broadcast of unfounded allegations linking the charity to terrorism financing.
In February, a guest on GB News falsely claimed that Islamic Relief was funding terrorist groups in the Middle East and was part of a larger agenda to promote extremism. These claims were vehemently denied by the charity.
Following a statement read in open court at the Royal Courts of Justice in London, where the court affirmed the baseless nature of the allegations, GB News removed the offending broadcast and related posts from its website and social media platforms. The channel also pledged not to repeat such false claims, broadcast a full apology, and agreed to pay damages and legal costs.
A spokesperson for Islamic Relief stated, “We are pleased that this matter has reached a satisfactory conclusion through the apology that was previously broadcast and now through this statement in open court. We have suffered over the past year from an increase in the promotion of baseless allegations against Islamic Relief.”
The spokesperson added, “Earlier this year, the Daily Mail newspaper also apologized for publishing similar allegations, and now GB News has been forced to do the same. Our mission is to provide humanitarian aid in the most troubled regions around the world. In carrying out our work, we have lost a number of colleagues who have been killed in terrorist attacks. Given this fact, the continued promotion of such false claims is extremely offensive and could endanger the lives of aid workers and the communities we serve.”
Islamic Relief Worldwide is a global humanitarian organization providing aid and development assistance to vulnerable communities around the world.
