The star of “The Kite Runner” says police in London are requesting a “formal interview” with him following his participation in a pro-Palestinian rally.
Khalid Abdalla, who also played Dodi Fayed in Netflix’s “The Crown,” wrote in a Monday statement posted on social media that he received a letter from Metropolitan Police “summoning me to attend ‘a formal interview’ in relation to the Palestine Solidarity Campaign protest of Jan. 18th.”
“It remains to be seen if this will result in charges,” the 44-year-old British performer said.
“The right to protest is under attack in this country and it requires us all to defend it.”
A Metropolitan Police spokesperson told ITK that authorities invited “eight people to be interviewed under caution at a police station” as part of its “ongoing investigation into alleged breaches of Public Order Act conditions” at the January protest. The rally came shortly after the announcement of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas following 15 months of war.
“While we are aware of names being attributed to those who have been invited for interview, we do not confirm the identity of anyone under investigation,” the statement said.
According to Metropolitan Police, Public Order Act conditions were communicated to organizers in advance and arrests were made after a group of rallygoers attempted to go further than the area designated for the protest. Twenty-one people have been charged.
In his X post, Abdalla wrote, “While there is an alarming rise in attempts to censor voices that stand up for Palestine, even as it faces open calls for ethnic cleansing, it will not work. The days of silencing after intimidation are gone.”
Abdalla cited the recent win in the best documentary category at the Academy Awards for “No Other Land,” which follows activist Basel Adra as he documents the destruction of his hometown at the southern edge of the West Bank, which Israeli soldiers are tearing down to use as a military training zone.
“The stakes are too high, and as we can see today with No Other Land winning at the Oscars, momentum is on the side of justice, and shared humanity,” Abdalla said.
Abdalla said while he wouldn’t comment further “for legal reasons,” he “will continue to put my energies towards the better world that we so clearly need, and which requires all of us to work together to turn into a reality.”