An Israeli legal rights group said Wednesday it was filing a lawsuit against two New Zealanders for allegedly convincing pop singer Lorde to cancel her performance in Israel in what appears to be the first lawsuit filed under a contentious Israeli anti-boycott law.
The 2011 law opens the door to civil lawsuits against anyone calling for a boycott against Israel, including of lands it has occupied, if that call could knowingly lead to a boycott. The law, which is part of Israel's fight against a global movement calling for boycotts against the Jewish state, allows courts to order defendants to pay damages.
Critics said the law would stifle free expression.
The two New Zealanders, Justine Sachs and Nadia Abu-Shanab, penned an open letter to Lorde last year in which they urged her to "take a stand" and "join the artistic boycott of Israel." The New Zealand singer-songwriter replied to a tweet of the letter saying "Noted! Been speaking (with) many people about this and considering all options. Thank u for educating me i am learning all the time too."
Late last year, Lorde announced she was cancelling her Tel Aviv concert, which had been scheduled for June 2018. With her cancellation she joined a number of international stars who canceled shows in Israel for political reasons, although many have continued to perform despite pressure from activists.
Shurat HaDin, the group filing the suit, claims the New Zealanders, one Jewish and one Palestinian, knew that their letter could trigger a boycott, making them open to legal action under the law. The lawsuit was filed in a Jerusalem court on Tuesday on behalf of three Israeli would-be concertgoers, seeking $13,000 in damages.
"This lawsuit is an effort to introduce tangible consequences to those who selectively target Israel and seek to impose an unjust and illegal boycott against the Jewish state," said Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, the group's head and the lawyer representing the plaintiffs.
"They must be made to compensate Israeli citizens for the moral and emotional injury and the indignity caused by their discriminatory actions," she said.
Darshan-Leitner went on to say that the law has not yet been tested in court because proving a link between a boycott and a call for one is difficult.
She said in this case the connection is clear, claiming that the first time Lorde brought up her reservations on the Tel Aviv performance was after the pair's letter and that the two women "took credit" for Lorde's decision to cancel on social media and elsewhere.
Contacted on Twitter, Sachs said she was unaware of any lawsuit.
Darshan-Leitner said anyone can be sued under the law, regardless of their nationality, and that she hopes legal agreements between Israel and New Zealand will help enforce any court ruling in favor of the plaintiffs.
