Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's charity, The Archewell Foundation, has severed ties with the Milwaukee Muslim Women's Coalition (MMWC). As per Middle East Eye, this happened after US broadcaster NewsNation disclosed the organisation's founder Janan Najeeb's pro-Palestine comments to the foundation.
Archewell, which has given two grants totalling nearly £42,000 (roughly $55,700) to the MMWC since 2023, announced that it will stop donating to the women's group in light of these comments.
Last week, NewsNation notified the Archewell Foundation that Janan called Israel an "apartheid state", a label also assigned by the International Court of Justice in a 2024 advisory opinion.
"Israel's 75-year occupation of Palestine and the genocide in Gaza are a grave injustice. We demand a permanent ceasefire, an end to arming the apartheid state of Israel, and the liberation of Palestine," read the founder's blog post from last year. "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. From the sea to the river, Palestine will live forever!"
In response, The Archewell Foundation penned a letter addressing the Muslim group's founder. "Janan, we've recently been notified of a blog post you wrote that goes against the values of the foundation. As a foundation, we celebrate different perspectives and backgrounds, but we have zero tolerance for hateful words, actions, or propaganda," the letter read.
Following this, many Instagram users rushed to support MMWC's charity work and denounced the foundation's actions. Tagging Meghan on Instagram Stories, a netizen wrote, "Charity should be given with sincerity, not for show."
About two years before the rift, Janan had extended her gratitude to the foundation for supporting the group in their mission to aid Gaza. "We took swift and impactful action in response to the war on Gaza. Our efforts, alongside other Wisconsin-based organisations, aimed to raise awareness and demand human rights for Palestinians," she said.
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