{"id":194844,"date":"2025-06-18T16:30:09","date_gmt":"2025-06-18T16:30:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/194844\/"},"modified":"2025-06-18T16:30:09","modified_gmt":"2025-06-18T16:30:09","slug":"nhs-nurse-ordered-to-remove-antisemitic-watermelon-video-call-background-launches-legal-action-nhs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/194844\/","title":{"rendered":"NHS nurse ordered to remove \u2018antisemitic\u2019 watermelon video call background launches legal action | NHS"},"content":{"rendered":"

A senior NHS<\/a> nurse who says he was ordered to remove a background on his video calls that showed a fruit bowl containing a watermelon because it could be perceived as antisemitic has launched legal action against his employer.<\/p>\n

Ahmad Baker, who is British-Palestinian and works at Whipps Cross hospital, north London<\/a>, is one of three medical staff claiming Barts Health NHS trust\u2019s ban on staff displaying symbols perceived as politically or nationally affiliated is disproportionate and discriminatory. Watermelons became symbols of Palestine amid censorship of the Palestinian flag because of its similar colours.<\/p>\n

Barts, which runs five London hospitals, introduced the ban in March in its updated uniform and dress code policy, which extends to items on workstations, laptops and iPads, even if staff are working from home and not seeing patients.<\/p>\n

The policy says it is in keeping with the trust\u2019s responsibility to be \u201ccompletely apolitical and non-biased in our care\u201d, but the claimants point to Barts\u2019 support for Ukraine<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Baker said: \u201cAs a Palestinian, I should be able to express my identity and solidarity with my people, especially during a humanitarian crisis. Being told that a still-life painting containing a watermelon could be perceived as antisemitic and being threatened with disciplinary action is deeply upsetting.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve worked for the NHS for over a decade \u2013 this is not the inclusivity I thought we stood for.\u201d<\/p>\n

Baker, along with Dr Aarash Saleh, a respiratory consultant at Whipps Cross, and Dr Sara Ali, a haematology registrar who previously worked at the Royal London hospital, claim the policy amounts to indirect discrimination under the Equality Act 2010, disproportionately affecting staff who wish to express pro-Palestinian beliefs, particularly considering events in Gaza.<\/p>\n

They also say that it say it unlawfully discriminates against them because of their anti-Zionist views, which were found to be a protected belief under the Equality Act by an employment tribunal last year<\/a>. Baker has also raised separate claims of direct discrimination and harassment.<\/p>\n

Ali said: \u201cTo suggest that expressing support for the Palestinians who are facing one of the most catastrophic humanitarian crises in recent history is somehow threatening, after the trust had rightly expressed support for Ukraine, is not only manifestly discriminatory but is antithetical to the values of universal empathy and compassion that underpin our practice as healthcare workers.\u201d<\/p>\n

A letter before action sent on behalf of the healthcare staff by Liana Wood from the law firm Leigh Day also argues that there was \u201cinappropriate consultation\u201d with a pro-Israel advocacy group, while sidelining internal staff voices.<\/p>\n

UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI), having complained to the trust about pro-Palestinian symbols worn by staff, published an article<\/a> on its website about the new policy eight days before it was officially implemented.<\/p>\n

Saleh said: \u201cIt\u2019s especially troubling that UKLFI publicly announced the policy before the trust itself had communicated it to staff \u2013 this raises serious concerns about transparency and whose voices were prioritised in the process.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The medics, who are crowdfunding their legal costs on the CrowdJustice platform, are seeking the removal of key provisions of the policy, a declaration from the employment tribunal that discrimination has taken place, and compensation for injury to feelings they have suffered and continue to suffer as a result of the policy.<\/p>\n

Wood said: \u201cTrusts must take care not to impose disproportionate restrictions on expression, especially where those restrictions appear to be targeted at a specific group or belief.\u201d<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for Barts said: \u201cWe recognise the distress that global conflict has for our diverse workforce and continue to support their wellbeing as they serve our patients. However, as an NHS organisation our primary responsibility is care for patients.\u201d<\/p>\n

They said the policy aimed to \u201cuphold political neutrality, creating an inclusive culture at work, and a safe space for patients in their time of need\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A senior NHS nurse who says he was ordered to remove a background on his video calls that…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":194845,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4316],"tags":[105,4348,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-194844","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-healthcare","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-healthcare","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114705322992909237","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194844","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=194844"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194844\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/194845"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=194844"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=194844"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=194844"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}