Girl Scouts troop splits with organisation after legal threats over Gaza bracelet fundraiser

A Girl Scout troop from St Louis, Missouri, is splitting from the organisation after the troops faced legal threats over an attempt to hold a fundraiser for children in Gaza.

Rather than selling cookies, which Girl Scout troops across the US do every year beginning in January, Troop 149 - all of whom are Muslim - decided they would instead sell handmade Palestinian-themed bracelets to raise money for children in Gaza suffering from Israel's war on the besieged enclave.

The troop then received an email, shared with The Washington Post, stating: “Girl Scouts is a non-partisan organization that does not take sides in political situations.”

The Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri asked the troop to edit social media posts about the fundraiser, saying it was unsanctioned and shouldn't be affiliated with the organisation.

Then, in another email, the Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri told the troop that "they had failed to remove all references to the Girl Scouts and threatened to 'engage our legal counsel' if she did not".

A spokesperson for Girl Scouts of the USA told The Washington Post that it lifted its fundraising restriction for three months at the start of the war on Gaza. Troop 149 began its fundraiser a few days after the restriction was put back in place.