An activist who serves as the international coordinator of a pro-Palestine group in Vancouver that is accused of having ties with a terrorist group recently travelled to Iran to receive a reward for her so-called activism.
Charlotte Kates from Samidoun, the Palestinian Prisoners Solidarity Network, has frequently echoed Islamist propaganda both in Canada and abroad.
While in Tehran, Iran on Aug 4, Kates was honoured by the theocratic Islamist regime with the Islamic Human Rights and Human Dignity Award on Aug.
Kates has most recently drawn widespread condemnation for her remarks during a Vancouver protest earlier this year, in which she praised the deadly October 7 Hamas terrorist attack on Israel, which she described as “brave” and “heroic.”
These comments, made publicly and reiterated during a recent interview with Iran’s state television network Ofogh TV, have intensified calls from Jewish advocacy groups and political figures to take action against her and Samidoun’s presence in Canada.
According to reports, Kates was born in the U.S. and her residency status in Canada is undetermined. Groups like B’nai Brith Canada have called on her and her husband Khaled Barakat to be deported from the country over their activism.
“They want to criminalize speaking about the resistance. I spoke about the brave, heroic October 7 operation and the legitimacy of the Palestinian resistance and why I want to get the resistance organizations off the so-called terror list,” said Kates during her interview on Ofogh TV posted online by the Middle East Media Research Institute.
During her interview in Iran, Kates can be seen wearing a hijab – a mandatory requirement for women enforced with the threat of imprisonment by Iran’s theocratic dictatorship. However, other videos of her activism while in Canada show Kates with her head bare and donning short hair.
Kates referred to the legitimacy of “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” which is the term Hamas terrorists have designated to the Oct. 7 attack. A total of 1,200 Israelis were killed in one of the most severe terror attacks in recent history. Another 200 were taken hostage – many of whom remain in captivity.
Samidoun has long been under scrutiny for its alleged affiliations with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a group designated as a terrorist organization by Canada, Germany, and Israel.
Jewish groups in Canada have been vocal in their demands for Samidoun to be similarly designated as a terrorist organization, citing its close ties to the PFLP and its alleged promotion of terrorism.
During the interview on Iranian state television Kates went even further, arguing that groups like Hezbollah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad—organizations widely recognized as terrorist entities in Canada—should instead be seen as “resistance fighters.”
True North reached out to Samidoun to allow Kates to clarify and elaborate on her remarks.
Kates was arrested by the Vancouver Police Department in June under hate speech provisions. Kates’ arrest received the attention of the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association which called for any potential charges to be dismissed citing “constitutionally protected expression.”
