Israel banned two NGOs operating in the north with relations to Hamas and an outlawed organization from 2015.
According to a statement by the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) and Defense Ministry, following prolonged activity, the “Ifshaa’ Al-Salam” committees (the Peace Spreading Committees), belonging to the outlawed Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement, have been outlawed, and their offices were closed on Tuesday.
The official statement added that Defense Minister Israel Katz signed an order outlawing “Ifshaa’ Al-Salam” “after the presentation of well-founded and unambiguous intelligence information collected on their activities.”
The Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement was declared an impermissible association in 2015 due to economic and ideological ties with Hamas and due to its inciting activity in Jerusalem and on Temple Mount.
Its counterpart, the Southern Branch, is seen as more pragmatic and moderate, even participating in Israeli politics under the Ra’am party.
Raed Salah, an imam from Umm el-Fahm who was arrested several times for incitement to violence and has led the Northern Branch for years, was arrested again in this context.
The statement accused Raed Salah of having built his public image over the years as a ‘defender of Al-Aqsa and Jerusalem’ from the Jewish takeover “while inciting and inflaming sentiments and using jihadist expressions, which translated into violence and disorder on the ground.”
The “Ifshaa’ al-Salam” committees were established by Raed Salah in 2017, only two years after the outlawing of his former association. According to the statement, despite the committees’ stated goal of dealing with the issue of violence in the Arab sector,
In practice, it was established as a cover for the continuation of the Northern Branch’s activities “in accordance with the worldview of the Muslim Brotherhood and to spread the Tanas’s anti-Israeli agenda.”
As part of their activities, activists of the committees, led by Raed Salah, visited educational institutions in Arab society with the aim of spreading the teachings of the outlawed Northern Branch.
The statement referred to the committees as “an entire system based on the Northern Branch’s past infrastructure,” which aims to create an affinity between Arab society and its ideology in order to preserve and strengthen Raed Salah’s position and ideologies.
In addition, another association found to be financing the committee, named “Mu’assat Al-Silm Al-Ajtma’i Lil-Islah Wal-Tahkim” (Social Peace Foundation for Reform and Arbitration) was also closed and its bank accounts were frozen.
Israeli expert: A game of cat and mouse
Dr. Nathaniel S. Avneri, who specializes in religious sermons, societal trends ,and public sentiments within the Arab community in Israel, explained that the outlawing of these NGOs is a direct continuation of the crackdown against the Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement, banned in Israel in 2015 for its connections with Hamas and the global Muslim Brotherhood movement.
“These NGOs were outlawed based on proof of their relations to the Northern Branch, which was banned in 2015, including at the organizational and cadre levels,” explained Avneri.
“This move has economic and legal implications. But it’s really a game of cat and mouse, and they will probably move on to establish a new NGO under a new name and continue their activities from there,” he added.
Avneri elaborated that the ban was directed at organizations, not at its cadres, who are local icons such as Raed Salah, which explains how they can still operate relatively freely.
“The future may hold more such bans, but tools are limited,” he concluded.
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