For instance, 2 weeks ago I commiserated with Naomi Chazan on the unusual police treatment some Left-wing protesters received (unusual for Left wingers), in protests that friends and co-ideologists of Chazan are involved with.
Last week, I became aware that these protests are far more sinister than I initially understood and there is plenty of indication that they are all organized (including the ones in Jerusalem) by the same groups of people, and in my opinion, are part of an organized Intifada being led by the Israeli left, and so I retracted and apologized.
Lurker found enough overt statements and claims of responsibility by these various radical left NGOs (claiming that they were heavily involved with and behind the multiple protests from Bi’ilin to Jerusalem) to make that assessment quite credible.
Fellow blogger, Purple Parrot strongly disagreed with Lurker’s research (and if I understand her correctly, she claims that all these NGO are all just jumping on the Sheikh Jarrach bandwagon), and during the back and forth she happened to mention the organization “New Israel Fund” (NIF).
As I just mentioned on my blog, some MKs, including Center-Left MKs want the NIF investigated, as apparently the NIF may have funded most of the NGOs that testified to Goldstone against Israel. Of course the Far-Left MKs are upset by the calls for the investigation against the NIF.
Now here is where it gets interesting.
Purple Parrot mentioned the “smear campaign” being mounted against “decent, hardworking NGOs (such as the disgusting one now being mounted against the NIF)”.
I’m sure most of these NGOs attacking Israel are very hard working, but decent?
But going back to the NIF, my whole interest in this began with Naomi Chazan’s article.
Now, I’m sure most Leftists knew this already, but since I don’t normally follow Leftwing politics, I wasn’t aware of it until today.
Naomi Chazan is the President of the New Israel Fund.
Most of the NGOs testifying against Israel to Goldstone receive funding from the New Israel Fund.
The obvious question is, how many of the NGOs involved in Ni’ilin, Bi’ilin, Sheikh Jarrach are also funded by New Israel Fund? Because that certainly makes her article even more suspect in my eyes. Some definitely do (such as ACRI – mentioned in the Chazan article), but it would certainly be interesting (but not surprising) to find out if most, if not all, of them receive money from the NIF.
Now much of the information that was revealed about NIF funding the various groups testifying against Israel came from an organization called Im Tirtzu – a student organization who are pro-Israel, and some came from the investigative efforts of NGO monitor.
The NIF consider themselves a ‘big tent organization’. They apparently don’t get their hands dirty. They outsource. It’s amazing how many organizations the NIF is apparently providing funding for that most people would consider anti-Israeli, such as organizations that call for divestment from Israel, or have ideologies that are in opposition to the concept of a Jewish-democratic state.
The NIF is of course hitting back. According to the JPost, they are responding by calling anyone who criticizes the NIF and Chazan as being part of a “smear campaign” (where did I just read that?), though not apparently denying or refuting (to the best of my knowledge) the various claims being publicized about them.
What Im Tirtzu and NGO monitor also uncovered is that Richard Goldstone sits as a board member of 3 (count them, three) organizations that traditionally accuse Israel of various war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Now what is also interesting is that all 3 organizations are funded by the Ford Foundation.
But do you know what other organization is funded by the Ford Foundation?
If you’ve read this far, then it wouldn’t surprise you to learn that it’s… wait for it… the New Israel Fund.
Read more here on all that.
(It’s also interesting to note that George Soros, through his Open Society Institute also donates to the New Israel Fund and to projects run by the NGOs funded by the NIF.)
So what’s the point you may ask?
I was just thinking of other money networks that exist for the purpose of destroying Israel, and the parallels here are just giving me the shivers.
Anyway, the accusations are apparently serious enough to worry about, that a Knesset subcommittee (under the Law and Justice Committee) will be specifically investigating the New Israel Fund - where their money is coming from, and just as importantly, where it’s going to.
I am sure the NIF will be given a chance to defend themselves against the specific accusations, and I am sure their defense will need to be a bit stronger than it a “smear campaign” against a big tent organization.
It certainly is amazing that so much that is going on here all seem to be interconnected through the same central hubs and individuals.
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