Pro-BDS groups in Israel receive foreign funding, report finds - Yair Altman

by Yair Altman

NGO Monitor says that of 398 nongovernmental organizations operating in Israel, only 185 comply with financial transparency guidelines on foreign funding • Over 50% of foreign donations go to groups with clear anti-Zionist agenda, report finds.

Anti-Zionist groups fail to meet transparency requirements, report says [Illustrative] | Photo credit: GettyImages

Hundreds of nongovernmental organizations operating in Israel, whose mission statements are clearly anti-Zionist, fail to meet financial transparency guidelines on foreign funding, a report by NGO Monitor revealed on Sunday.

The watchdog group, which according to its website strives to "generate and distribute critical analysis and reports on the output of the international NGO community" with the objective of ending "the practice used by certain self-declared humanitarian NGOs of exploiting the label 'universal human rights values' to promote politically and ideologically motivated agendas," found that out of the 398 NGOs registered in Israel, only 185 have complied with financial transparency guidelines.

The report found that over the past three years, foreign funding to these groups exceeded 100 million shekels ($26 million), with over 50% of the funds given to 27 NGOs described as "very active" in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The findings also showed that only 41 groups complied with the Registrar of Associations' requirement to submit quarterly financial reports detailing foreign funding sources. 

NGO Monitor noted that the amount of money donated between 2012 and 2014 by foreign entities and governments to Israeli-based NGOs was most likely higher then the estimated $26 million, as most of the groups failed to properly report foreign funding. 

It found that in 2014 alone, 27 high-profile NGOs, known of their anti-Zionist platforms and support of anti-Israeli boycott, divestment and sanctions activities, received over NIS 55 million ($14 million) in foreign donations. 

"Out of hundreds of organizations and groups in Israel that say their activities focus on human rights, peace, coexistence, and humanitarian work, only a handful of political groups with clear agendas receive over half of all foreign donations, including groups involved in a delegitimization campaign against Israel. This raises many questions about the process by which European governments select their partners in Israel," said Professor Gerald M. Steinberg, president of NGO Monitor.

Steinberg added that the foreign government's selection process should be subjected to transparency guidelines as well, and that "the massive funding political groups receive is unique to Israel."

Yair Altman

Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=34741

Follow Middle East and Terrorism on Twitter

Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.