Strategic Affairs Minister briefs the media on February 3 about the terror connections with BDS organizations. (photo credit: MINISTRY OF STRATEGIC AFFAIRS AND PUBLIC DIPLOMACY)
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Thirty financial accounts associated with BDS-promoting non-profit organizations with ties to terrorism or terror operatives have been closed in the last two years, according to a report by the Ministry of Strategic Affairs.
The data – results of an undisclosed economic campaign by the ministry and pro-Israel organizations – was revealed for the first time on Monday.
Ten of the accounts were closed in the United States, 20 in Europe.
According to the ministry, these closures have “significantly curtailed the influx of funds” these organizations receive.
“For years, boycott promoters have disguised themselves as ‘human rights activists’, managing to raise tens of millions of euros from Western countries and citizens who thought they were contributing to causes supporting justice and equality,” Minister of Strategic Affairs Gilad Erdan said in a statement. “Over time though, we have revealed that the supposed ‘human rights’ NGOs are in reality, filled with antisemitic operatives with deep ties to terrorist groups fixated on destroying the State of Israel.
“As a result of our actions, countries and financial institutions are now distancing themselves from these organizations,” Erdan continued.
The report cited several examples of accounts closed, such as three accounts – one each on PayPal, Donorbox and PLAID – belonging to the boycott organization Samidoun, which were shut down by request of the International Legal Forum, who brought to the platforms’ attention Samidoun’s close ties with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).
The ties were originally made clear in a report published by the Ministry of Strategic Affairs earlier this year called “Terrorists in Suits.” That report revealed more than 100 links between terror groups and organizations promoting Israel boycotts, including the employment of 30 current and “retired” terror operatives. It showed how these terrorists use BDS organizations to whitewash their true activities against Israel and reported on efforts by terrorist operatives to use a “human rights activists” persona to mask their true selves. By doing so, these individuals obtain legitimacy and money from Western countries to finance activities to boycott and delegitimize Israel.
Terrorists in Suits showed that Samidoun’s two representatives in Europe, Mustafa Awad and Muhammad Khatib, are both members of terrorist organizations.
Samidoun publicly responded to the closure of its accounts, accusing the Ministry of Strategic Affairs for pursuing its organization and members, and said that the ministry’s exposure of the organization’s connections to terrorist groups constitutes “one of its most significant threats.”
Similarly, in May 2018, the credit card accounts of the Al Haq organization were closed due to work of a pro-Israel NGO revealing their links to terrorism. Al-Haq is one of the leaders in promoting boycotts and delegitimization of Israel and a veteran organization active in the Palestinian arena.
The Terrorist in Suites report uncovered, for example, that Shawan Jabarin, a senior PFLP activist who served several prison terms in Israel for his involvement in terrorism, is today, director-general of Al-Haq. The organization describes itself as “an independent Palestinian human-rights organization [that] monitors and documents human-rights violations by all parties to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.” Jabarin recruited al-Haq activists who were involved in terrorism and served a prison sentence of two years for doing so.
Other examples in Monday’s report include the BDS National Committee (BNC), the umbrella organization leading the global BDS campaign from its headquarters in Ramallah. BNC had its crowdfunding account on DonorBox shut down through a combination effort by the ministry and the NGO Shurat Hadin.
Also known as the Israel Law Center, Shurat Hadin used the ministry’s information, such as that the BNC Secretariat Salah Khawaja served a year in an Israeli prison due to contact with a hostile entity, to approach DonorBox and request it close the organization’s account.
According to Monday’s report, the closure of the DonorBox account is “preventing the organization from raising money from using a significant financial pipeline.”
After the DonorBox closure, the BNC then opened another account on the website Charityweb, “but this attempt was unsuccessful as the account was closed within a few hours,” according to the report.
Further, over the past two years a number of fundraising accounts associated with Interpal, which has been found to have ties with Hamas, have been closed. The organization’s MyDonate crowdfunding account was frozen, as well as a number of its credit card accounts were cancelled.
The results, according to Erdan: “Our efforts have drastically undermined the boycott campaign, leading to it having much less finances to operate, and barred from receiving financial services.”
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