Steve Coogan has addressed the open letter he and thousands of other famous faces signed which accused Western governments of "not only tolerating war crimes but aiding and abetting them" during the Israel-Hamas conflict.
The open letter penned by Artists for Palestine came in the days after Israel cut off supplies to Gaza in response to Hamas' terror attacks and its capturing of hostages.
Thousands have died on both sides since the terrorist group launched its first attack on Israel on October 7 but Israel's defence led to the "creatives" who signed the letter to demand "our governments end their military and political support for Israel’s actions".
The famous faces who've weighed into the debate have sparked divisive reactions from religious and political groups across the globe, as well as their own fanbases.
But now Coogan - who currently stars as Jimmy Savile in the BBC's controversial drama The Reckoning - has defended the decision to sign the letter.
"I just want to make sure that is correct, and I do of course condemn the recent Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel; their deliberate murder of civilians and their taking of hostages," he began in a statement to PA [via Metro].
Coogan was just one of thousands of stars to sign the letter
PA
"All right thinking people do," he clarified before he delved further: "The Jewish people have been uniquely the target of hate and prejudice for millennia and anyone who cares about human rights should be vigilant and call it out when they encounter it.
"It goes without saying that what Hamas did is evil beyond imagination. It was horrific and brutal.
"It is in no way inconsistent with condemnation of the Hamas atrocity, to express grave concern for the lives and welfare of innocent Palestinian civilians facing a humanitarian disaster, deprived of food, water, medicine fuel and shelter," Coogan signed off.
Coogan's condemnation of Hamas and defence of his signature comes just days after a fellow celebrity who'd signed the open letter issued a grovelling apology for doing so.
Outlander star Sam Heughan insisted he "inadvertently" signed the letter which "does not reflect my beliefs", adding: "I believed it was a simple call for PEACE... it wasn't."
Heughan conceded in his statement: "I don't know nearly enough and trying to educate myself on the conflicts in the Middle East. I feel helpless and wish I could help in some way."
Coogan and Heughan were just two in a long line of celebrities who penned their signatures on the open letter, with stars including Tilda Swinton, Frankie Boyle and Josie Long among the others.
The full letter by Artists for Palestine reads: "We are witnessing a crime and a catastrophe. Israel has reduced much of Gaza to rubble, and cut off the supply of water, power, food and medicine to 2.3 million Palestinians.
"In the words of the UN’s undersecretary for humanitarian affairs, 'the spectre of death' is hanging over the territory. Gaza is already a society of refugees and the children of refugees.
"Now, in their hundreds of thousands, bombarded from air, sea and land, Palestinians whose grandparents were forced out of their homes at the barrel of a gun are again being told to flee – or face collective punishment on an unimaginable scale.
"Dispossessed of rights, described by Israel’s minister of defence as 'human animals', they have become people to whom almost anything can be done.
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Sam Heughan retracted his signature
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"Our governments are not only tolerating war crimes but aiding and abetting them. There will come a time when they are held to account for their complicity.
"But for now, while condemning every act of violence against civilians and every infringement of international law whoever perpetrates them, our obligation is to do all we can to bring an end to the unprecedented cruelty being inflicted on Gaza.
"We support the global movement against the destruction of Gaza and the mass displacement of the Palestinian people. We demand that our governments end their military and political support for Israel’s actions.
"We call for an immediate ceasefire and the opening of Gaza’s crossings to allow humanitarian aid to enter unhindered," the letter concluded.
