What is Samidoun, the Palestinian group designated by Canada as a terrorist organisation?

Canada, in conjunction with the United States, has classified the Palestinian prisoner support group Samidoun as a "terrorist entity," citing its alleged connections to left-wing Palestinian faction the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which is also designated as a terrorist organisation.

On Tuesday, the US Department of the Treasury stated that Samidoun operates as an international fundraiser for the PFLP, a claim supported by Canada’s Public Safety Minister, Dominic LeBlanc, in his statement.  

The recent actions by both governments come in the wake of Germany's decision to ban the organisation in October 2023, and the Dutch parliament's vote earlier this week to classify Samidoun as a "terrorist" organisation. 

“Organizations like Samidoun masquerade as charitable actors that claim to provide humanitarian support to those in need, yet in reality divert funds for much-needed assistance to support terrorist groups,” Treasury official Bradley T. Smith said in a statement.  

Separately, Canadian official Dominic LeBlanc said in a statement that "the listing of Samidoun as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code sends a strong message that Canada will not tolerate this type of activity."

The coordinated action by the US and Canada places individuals who associate with or financially support Samidoun at risk of penalties, along with other repercussions. 

Mohammad Khatib, the Europe coordinator for Samidoun, told The New Arab that the recent sanctions and the designation of the group as a "terrorist" organisation represent "a coordinated attempt by the enemies of the Palestinian people to stop every form of solidarity with the Palestinian people."

"The repression of Samidoun is part of a larger attack against the Palestinian political prisoners movement, the Palestinian diaspora, the Arab community in the US and Canada and all internationalists that struggle for Palestine," he continued. 

Khatib reiterated that the organisation would continue its efforts to mobilise against Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza, which has claimed the lives of at least 42,409 Palestinians, mostly civilians, as of Wednesday. 

He affirmed the group's commitment to halting "crimes against humanity and the Israeli occupation," adding that they will persist in their struggle "to stop the genocide, end imperialist support for Israel, and achieve the liberation of Palestine from the river to the sea, the right of return and victory for the Palestinian people."

Samidoun – also known as the Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network – described itself as "an international network of organizers and activists working to build solidarity with Palestinian prisoners in their struggle for freedom." 

On its website, Samidoun describes its mission as working "to raise awareness and provide resources about Palestinian political prisoners, their conditions, their demands, and their work for freedom for themselves, their fellow prisoners, and their homeland." 

However, the group has come under increasing pressure from pro-Israel organisations across North America and Europe, who have been lobbying for years to have it designated as a "terrorist" organisation. 

Additionally, the organisation has since faced heightened scrutiny in recent months, particularly amid mass protests across Canada, the US, and other regions in response to the ongoing war on the Gaza Strip. 

In its Tuesday statement, the US State Department labelled Samidoun as a "sham charity," while also designating a Canadian citizen as a "terrorist."

The individual, Khaled Barakat, is accused of being a member of the PFLP’s leadership abroad and of assisting in raising funds for the group. 

Barakat, a writer and activist, has previously described the allegations regarding his supposed connections as rooted in anti-Palestinian and anti-Muslim sentiment.  

In a 2022 interview with pro-Palestine news outlet Electronic Intifada, he asserted that such accusations were a blatant attempt to "criminalise" his writing and activism. 

As repeated allegations linking both Barakat and the organisation Samidoun to the PFLP, concerns have since been raised as a result of attempts to silence other Palestinian advocates in past instances. 

Tariq Kenney-Shawa, a US policy analyst at the Palestinian think tank Al-Shabaka, expressed in a post on the social media platform X that Samidoun's designation is significant, stating that it "served as an effective advocate for Palestinian prisoners."  

He warned that this situation could serve as a precedent for targeting all Palestinian civil society organisations. 

The US non-profit organisation, the Center for Constitutional Rights, has reported a significant increase in efforts to suppress advocacy for Palestine in the United States since the Gaza war began on 7 October 2023.  

They assert that this crackdown is driven by pro-Israel groups, including the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), which aims to broaden US antiterrorism laws to target those advocating for Palestinian rights. 

In 2021, Israel designated six Palestinian human rights organisations based in the West Bank as “terrorist” groups. 

Israeli authorities claimed that these organisations had links to the PFLP, allegations that the NGOs have vehemently denied and provoked widespread international condemnation. 

Michelle Bachelet, then UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, alluded that these actions were violations of civic freedoms, as she pointed out that the allegations were based on vague or unsubstantiated claims. 

In a report that same year, Israeli-Palestinian news outlet +972 Magazine said that this declaration pose significant challenges to these organisations, raising the risk of severe legal, financial, and violent repercussions. 

It added that supporting any listed group, even through volunteering, could be viewed as a criminal act, deterring local and international donors, including Western nations, and crippling their operations. 

The previous targeting of Palestinian human rights organisations and civil society groups has coincided with efforts to suppress and criminalise Palestinian activism and expressions of identity, particularly in Western nations.  

The targeting of Palestinian human rights groups has coincided with efforts to suppress Palestinian activism, particularly in Western countries.  

Security forces have disrupted peaceful protests, while officials have broadly accused demonstrators of anti-Semitism. 

Public figures also claimed that wearing the keffiyeh or using "intifada" (meaning uprising in Arabic) signifies a desire to "wipe out Israel."  

Activists have repeatedly argued this crackdown impacts politics, business, civil society, education, and culture.