The donor European countries have announced that they will continue their cooperation and support. Directors of five of the six organizations declared terrorist organizations last week in Ramallah at al-Haq offices (photo by Oren Ziv)
The countries that contribute to the six Palestinian organizations, which Israel declared last year as terrorist organizations, announced today (Tuesday) that they reject the Israeli claims, and will continue to financially support the organizations.
A joint statement issued by the nine donor countries stated that Israel had not provided enough evidence to substantiate the allegations against the organizations. The signatory countries are Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden.
The statement read: “On October 22, 2021, Israel declared six Palestinian civil society organizations terrorist organizations. Accusations of terrorism or links to terrorist organizations must always be taken abysmally seriously. Therefore, the declaration had to be carefully and thoroughly evaluated. No information was received from Israel. It is significant that could justify a re-examination of our policy towards the six Palestinian organizations on the basis of Israel’s decision to declare them ‘terrorist organizations’.
“If we receive information that justifies the declaration, we will act accordingly. In the absence of such evidence, we will continue our cooperation and support for civil society in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. A free and strong civil society is essential for the promotion of democratic values and a two-state solution.”
Already last month, the European Commission announced to al-Haq, one of the organizations declared “terrorist organizations,” that it would return to support its project, after examining Israel’s claims. A representative of the European Union told the organization that the European Commission’s Fraud Investigation Agency (OLAF) had found no reason to open an investigation into the allegations, and that there was no suspicion of fraud or misconduct by the organization regarding the commission’s project budget.
In October last year, Defense Minister Bnei Gantz declared six Palestinian civil society organizations – al-Haq, a-Damir, the Agriculture Committees, the Bissan Center, the Women’s Committees and the International Branch of Palestine Branch (DCI-P) – terrorist organizations. The announcement was made without presenting any evidence or disclosing information to the public. Since the announcement, the organizations have sought to get the materials behind it, but have been refused.
Since the Gantz announcement, we have published in “Local Conversation” two investigations, which revealed that Israel has not presented evidence substantiating its claims against the organizations. In the first investigation, we unveiled a 74-page document, authored by the GSS, and sent to donor countries in May 2021, about six months before the declaration.
Minister of Defense, Bnei Gantz (Olivia Fitoussi / Flash 90)
This document sought to prove ostensibly that the six organizations are part of the Popular Front, support its activities, and serve as a conduit for the transfer of funds to it. The same document was also presented to U.S. officials after the announcement. The investigation revealed that the allegations against the six organizations were not substantiated by actual evidence.
An examination of the evidence contained in the document, and of the original investigative summaries, revealed that it was based on testimony from accountants arrested by Israel, who did not work for any of the six organizations, who provided hypotheses or information that “everyone knows” without them witnessing.
In addition, the unsubstantiated evidence of the two indicated at most the involvement of some of the organizations in overt civic activity, which was ideologically part of the popular front, and included student activity, helping patients, theater and singing classes, and classes in devotional dance. These parts were omitted from the document that the Foreign Ministry sent to the various countries. Contrary to the Ministry of Defense’s claims, no faint evidence was presented in all the pages of the document, indicating that the organizations diverted funds in favor of violent activity.
In January this year, we published another investigation, which shows that most European countries were not convinced by the materials to which Israel transferred them, and some had already officially announced that they were rejecting the Israeli allegations against the organizations. A senior diplomat then said that within two months, the states would officially reject the Israeli claims, as indeed happened.
Since the announcement, Israel has invested in advocacy efforts, including using the conviction of a Spanish citizen who worked for one of the organizations in a plea deal, to claim that this is “further proof” that the organizations do indeed belong to the Popular Front. Examination of the plea bargain and determination of the military court showed that this too had no basis.
Obi Abodi, CEO of Bisan, said in response to the declaration of donor countries: “It took time for the declaration to come out, but we are glad it came, and expect the countries to exert increased diplomatic pressure on Israel, because there is no evidence. We encourage other countries, such as the United Kingdom, Switzerland and the United States, to publish similar messages.
Abodi said he could not assess whether the statement would influence Israel to cancel the declaration of the organizations as terrorist organizations. “I do not know if it will affect Israel, but we will not stop working. We will continue on our way.”
Shawan Jabarin, executive director of al-Haq, told Local Call: “We welcome the statement, even if it took time, when it comes to such countries, it is very important to us. We request that they continue to demand that Israel cancel the statement of the Minister of Defense and the military order. “
Jabarin noted that the donor countries gave Israel eight months to provide detailed information or evidence. “We were against it, because from the beginning it was clear that this is a political decision that has nothing to do with security, because of the nature of our work, that Israel does not like our activities.”
He said the states rejected the Israeli claims because they “did not meet the minimum standard of a democratic state. They defend their democracy and their values. Israel tries to punish civil society without evidence or information, and they want the whole world to accept it and take it for granted.”
“Until now, Israelis have not listened to what the Europeans and the rest of the world say about the declaration. But we will continue to work so that the partners will pressure Israel to cancel it. As long as the decision and the military order exist, it affects us.”
A Foreign Ministry spokesman said their response would be published later.
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