This webinar marks the publication of an important new report: Funding Freedom: Philanthropy and the Palestinian Freedom Movement. The report, authored by Rebecca Vilkomerson and published by Solidaire Action, looks at the obstacles and opportunities to meet the urgent need to create the conditions for individual donors, foundations, and funding networks to increase ongoing and sustainable giving in support of Palestinian freedom. It includes an analysis of the funding landscape, lawfare trends, case studies, and recommendations for action. The webinar will focus on obstacles, opportunities, and the complexities of sustainable giving in support of Palestinian freedom. Hosted by Vini Bhansali (Solidaire Action) with Rebecca Vilkomerson (author and advocate), Chung-Wha Hong (Grassroots International), Lara Kiswani (AROC); and Soheir Asaad (Rawa Fund). Co-sponsored by: Solidaire Action, Grassroots International, Resource Generation, Foundation for Middle East Peace (FMEP), Sagner Family Foundation, Rawa Fund, Farbman Family Foundation, and Radical Imagination Family Foundation.

“How are these two countries’ elections connected? How have American candidates and lobbying groups used Israel to sink their opponents’ campaigns? And will the different potential outcomes of Tuesday’s elections alter U.S. policy on Israel-Palestine? To answer these questions, +972 Magazine spoke with Lara Friedman, president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace…Throughout our conversation, Friedman repeatedly stressed her surprise at the refusal of mainstream Jewish groups in the United States to draw any “red lines,” despite Israel’s increasingly brazen anti-democratic policies. Legacy Jewish-American organizations like AIPAC, the American Jewish Committee (AJC), and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), as well as the U.S. government, have all continued to vociferously defend Israel at all costs while invoking “shared values,” she said. In Friedman’s view, even the entrance of the Kahanist Itamar Ben Gvir and other far-right lawmakers into Israel’s new government seems unlikely to change this unwavering support.”

1. Israel Gives Settler Group $7.8 Million for East Jerusalem Projects
2. Israel Supreme Court Holds Hearing on Silwan Displacement Case
3. Israeli Lawmakers Join Settlers on Provocative Visit to Joseph’s Tomb; 1 Palestinian Killed
4. Peace Now Video Shows Impact and Tragedy of the Planned E-2 /Givat Eitam Settlement
5. A New Israeli Government: Implications for Settlements & Annexation
6. Bonus Reads

FMEP publishes two resources on (most) Fridays: Lara Friedman’s Legislative Round-Up and Kristin McCarthy’s Settlement & Annexation Report. To subscribe to those reports, click here.

“The exact contours of the new government are not final, but one thing is certain: Israel has entered uncharted territory. The only question is just how far to the right Netanyahu is willing to go…In his fifth term in office, Netanyahu could change the face of the country permanently. The Religious Zionism Party has released sweeping plans to curtail Israel’s judicial branch and undermine any meaningful constraints on the government’s power. These plans follow a years-long right-wing campaign to delegitimize the judiciary, an effort that Netanyahu joined following investigations of his conduct that led to indictments on corruption charges in 2020. Religious Zionism’s legal plan calls to nullify one of the key crimes with which Netanyahu has been charged, although the party denies that it is trying to protect him personally. The plan also proposes establishing near-total political control over judicial appointments and a new law that would allow the Knesset to easily override a Supreme Court ruling striking down legislation that violates the rights provided in Israel’s Basic Laws, which function as the country’s bill of right. Such changes would remove the few obstacles that remain to legalizing West Bank settlements that even Israel considers unlawful and annexing Palestinian territory. They would also weaken civic opposition to government policy by limiting citizens’ access to the Supreme Court, which doubles as Israel’s High Court of Justice for claims against the state…Israel is about to enter an era defined by the tyranny of the right-wing majority in politics and the tyranny of the orthodox and ultra-Orthodox minority in society.” See also Coalition Talks | Netanyahu Commits to Top Court Override Clause in Next Government (Haaretz)

“In France, the US, Italy, and India, right-wing leaders are seeking—to varying degrees—to create ethnocracies, states that define themselves as belonging to a dominant ethnic, religious, or racial group. Their centrist opponents—to varying degrees—support legal equality for all citizens. This divide creates deep ideological polarization. But Israel is not deeply ideologically polarized. It’s already an ethnocracy and no major political party wants to change that. That’s what sets Ben-Gvir apart from figures like Trump and Le Pen: His rivalry with his centrist foes may be politically fierce, but it’s not a contest over the basic definition of the state. In the global struggle between group supremacy and equality under the law, Ben-Gvir and his centrist rivals are on the same side… The most significant divide between Ben-Gvir and Lapid isn’t about immigration; it’s about deportation. Lapid does not support expelling Israel’s Palestinian citizens. Ben-Gvir, on the other hand, has since adolescence revered Kahane, who argued that Jewish supremacy could never be secure so long as Israel retained a substantial Palestinian population… Unlike Kahane, Ben-Gvir does not call for expelling all of Israel’s Palestinian citizens, just the “disloyal” ones. But during the campaign his party ran ads featuring the faces of two of Israel’s most popular Palestinian politicians alongside the words “May our enemies be banished.” Ben-Gvir’s notion of disloyalty is expansive. Whether or not he believes he can expel Palestinian citizens from the country, the threat serves a purpose. It bolsters Israeli ethnocracy by warning that Palestinians may face harsh reprisals if they challenge it.” See also this Jewish Currents podcast, Victory for Netanyahu’s Far-Right Alliance. 

“The total disintegration of the Joint List, by cruel historical timing, is a critical piece of the far right’s momentous victory. As Kahanists prepare to seize various rudders of state power, Palestinian citizens (also referred to as ‘48 Palestinians) are finding themselves in an extremely vulnerable position, facing an emboldened ultra-nationalist camp that has put the question of non-Jews inside Israel — in particular, the Judaization of so-called “mixed” cities and regions like the Naqab/Negev — at the forefront of their agenda. The targeting of Palestinians in Israel is nothing new; demographic warfare and racial domination have been core pillars of the state’s relationship with its “enemy citizens,” and during Netanyahu’s 12-year streak in power, the Knesset enacted dozens of new laws and policies curbing their rights even further. Yet there is no denying that the project of “internal colonization” has drastically intensified, not just in the dogmatic rhetoric of politicians and media pundits, but as violent facts on the ground. From settler militias on the streets of Lydd and Haifa to escalating home demolitions in unrecognized Bedouin villages, the rightward drift of Israeli-Jewish society has proven their colonial regime can become much worse. Against these worsening threats, neither the Palestinian public nor its leaders appear to have a plan or the tools to resist what’s to come.” 

“A far-right Israeli lawmaker, whose surging popularity helped propel former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu back to power in last week’s general election, has delivered a glowing tribute at a memorial event for an extremist rabbi assassinated in 1990. Itamar Ben-Gvir, whose ultra-nationalist Jewish Power party emerged as the second biggest group in Netanyahu’s bloc and the third largest in the country, praised the late racist rabbi Meir Kahane in a speech at the memorial in Jerusalem on Thursday…“I think that the main characteristic of Kahane was love. Love of Israel without compromise and without any other considerations” he said.” See also U.S. slams Israeli ultranationalist lawmaker’s remarks at Kahane memorial (Axios), US blasts ‘abhorrent’ celebration of Kahane after prospective minister attends (Times of Israel), US concerned over appointment of Israeli ultranationalist as public security minister (Al Monitor); Israel’s president says ‘world is worried’ about far-right partner in Netanyahu coalition (Guardian); For more on US concerns, see US will ‘fight’ any Israeli annexation, ambassador says (Middle East Eye), Netanyahu’s far-right partners in Israel worry US (Al Monitor), US expresses concern over selection of far-right Israeli defence minister: Report (Middle East Eye)

“To the many Israelis shocked by the meteoric rise of Itamar Ben Gvir, an anti-Arab far-right politician set to be at the center of Israel’s next government, media analysts offer a simple explanation: excessive airtime…In total, Ben Gvir garnered 100 hours of airtime in 2021, far more than any other politician, according to Darkenu, an Israeli nongovernmental organization promoting political moderation. And with every TV appearance, radio spot and social media post, his formerly fringe positions — expel “disloyal” Arab and Jewish citizens, allow Israeli soldiers to shoot to kill alleged Palestinian assailants, overhaul the country’s judicial system — became normalized, said Nadav Eyal, an Israeli columnist with the Yediot Ahronot newspaper.”

“Israel has detained 6,000 Palestinians since the start of this year, including 141 women and 739 children, the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club (PPC) revealed yesterday. In a report issued yesterday, the PPC said that the Israeli occupation had issued 1,829 administrative detention orders; detaining Palestinians without charge or trial. According to the report, the highest number of detainees was recorded in Jerusalem where 2,700 Palestinians had been detained. In the report, the PPC stated that this year was the worst for prisoners and their families compared to the past few years.”

“In response to a spate of Palestinian attacks that began in the spring, Israeli forces have been carrying out near-nightly raids in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. Israel’s government says it is targeting newly formed militias. Palestinian authorities have decried the crackdown as collective punishment, and say children are increasingly caught in the dragnet. Nearly 130 Palestinian minors were in prison on security grounds at the end of September, according to Israel Prison Service statistics. The annual total to date — including minors detained for at least several hours — no doubt is much higher. Seventy-three percent of Palestinian children in Israeli custody last year reported being subject to physical violence, an all-time high, according to Military Court Watch, a watchdog group based in the West Bank city of Ramallah…In the West Bank, meanwhile, 2022 is on course to be the deadliest year for Palestinians since the United Nations began tracking fatalities in 2005. At least 28 Palestinians younger than 18 have been killed so far this year, compared with 17 in all of 2021, according to U.N. data. More than 800 minors have been injured. The United Nations voiced concerns last month that Israel is using excessive force against children. Rights groups say Israel routinely violates international law in its treatment of Palestinian minors in detention, including by physically and verbally abusing them and failing to inform them of their rights…Now, Ben Gvir is likely to become Israel’s next public security minister, in charge of the police, prisons and security around Jerusalem religious sites, which have long been flash points in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He has called for giving police and soldiers wider latitude to use live ammunition and shielding them from criminal prosecution for killing or injuring Palestinians.” See also “He asked me how many children I have. Then he said: ‘Now you have one less.’” (+972); Israeli forces kill five Palestinians in three days (The New Arab), and from Middle East Eye: Palestinian teen killed after Nablus tomb incursion by Israeli politicians, West Bank: Israeli forces fatally shoot Palestinian teen near Ramallah, Boy among four Palestinians killed by Israeli forces in separate incidents; 

“Jenin refugee camp is widely known among the Israeli security apparatus as “the wasp’s nest,” a term that with the start of the year has been re-popularized, especially during the first months of the ongoing Israeli military onslaught on bastions of Palestinian resistance. It is almost 3:00 a.m., and the watchmen of the camp are patrolling the streets nearby, ready to protect the camp from Israeli invasions. Despite the late hour, the men are alert to any unfamiliar face, fearing they may potentially be undercover Israeli special forces on an assassination mission. This year, more than 16 resistance fighters have been targeted and assassinated in Jenin alone, the result of a return to the decades-old Israeli policy of “liquidation”…[The Jenin Brigade] operates as an umbrella organization for a diverse set of armed groups, and the political and factional ideologies of the various fighters in the Brigade have taken a backseat to the immediate objective of protecting the camp and repelling Israeli incursions.”

“The emergence of the Lions’ Den comes as public support for armed resistance increases among Palestinians. It is not the first new armed group to emerge: In September 2021, the Jenin Brigades, affiliated mostly with the Gaza-based Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), announced itself. In May 2022, a similar group also affiliated with the PIJ – the Nablus Brigades – was formed. While its roots go back to February 2022, the Lions’ Den formally emerged in September. “We are a group and not an organisation. Anyone who wants to resist the occupation is welcome,” one fighter told Al Jazeera in the old city of Nablus, adding that members use rifles they acquired on their own and not in an organised or funded manner…The effect of these groups has been evident from the sharp increase in shooting operations at checkpoints, and killings of Israeli soldiers and settlers over the past two months. The Lions’ Den has since taken the responsibility for several shootings. The group has gained support in the past few months. Thousands have turned up for the funerals of dead fighters, and demands made to the public by the Lions’ Den have led to general strikes and protests.”

“Jerusalem Deputy Mayor and right-wing activist Arieh King is helping an anonymous Jewish philanthropist to launch a program to encourage the emigration of non-Jewish citizens outside of Israel, King announced on Facebook on Wednesday. In an interview to HaMakom Independent Magazine following the post, King explained that “the idea is to encourage non-Jews to relocate outside the borders of our country.” The philanthropist who supports the current venture wishes to remain anonymous. King refused to use the term “transfer,” claiming instead that the plan is better seen as an encouraged “business-relocation” for non Jews. “If we’ll manage to get a quarter or half a million Arabic speakers out of the country, that will be enough,” he clarified.”

“For specialist treatment, Palestinians often need to be referred to a hospital outside Gaza – then apply for a travel permit. Tight budgets and restrictions mean few are granted. Here, one woman details the obstacles she has faced.” See also Israeli fighter jets bomb Gaza in first such operation since August (Middle East Eye)

“A United Nations independent commission of inquiry has begun public hearings on the alleged human rights violations in the Palestinian territories, with the first day focusing on Israel’s outlawing of several Palestinian rights organisations last year…The hearings, which have been harshly criticised by Israel, will also address the killing of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was shot in the head by Israeli forces while on assignment in the occupied West Bank in May. The UN rights office has said its findings suggest that Akleh was deliberately killed by Israeli forces while an Israeli investigation concluded she was likely to have been unintentionally shot by an Israeli soldier…Shawan Jabarin, the head of legal-aid human rights group Al-Haq, told the three-member panel that Israel’s decision to outlaw Palestinian rights groups as “terrorist” organisations was “like an execution” designed to stop them from probing abuses. He charged that the “terrorist” designation in October had come after a years-long smear campaign against his organisation, which included efforts to get backers to drop their support, as well as death threats against him and other colleagues…Neither the hearings nor the UN Human Rights Council has any legal enforcement. However, investigations launched by the council are sometimes used as evidence before national or international courts.”

“A powerful rightwing pressure group, the American Legislative Exchange Council (Alec), is pushing states to adopt a new law shielding all US businesses from “political boycotts”. Although primarily aimed at protecting controversial industries such as fossil fuel companies, big agriculture and gun manufacturers, the proposed legislation is written to prevent boycotts by investors, banks and other companies of any US business…Some Republican-led states have passed hundreds of pieces of Alec’s model legislation almost word for word, including laws pushing the conservative agenda on immigration, voting suppression, the environment, guns and energy policy…The eliminate political boycotts act has its roots in legislation already on the books in more than 30 states to block boycotts of Israel over its oppression of the Palestinians.” See also Lara Friedman’s extensive research and documentation of this effort to suppress boycott and the links to efforts to ensure Israeli impunity: Israel-focused Anti-Boycott Legislation — A Template for Targeting Protest on Other Issues

“The Anti-Defamation League is acquiring JLens Investor Network, a nonprofit that offers socially conscious investment funds for Jewish organizations, to prevent concerns over Israeli human rights abuses from curtailing investments in the country. Jewish establishment organizations including the ADL and JLens have recently spoken out against companies like Ben & Jerry’s and Morningstar, the financial services giant, that they believe have held Israel to an unfair standard…[ADL Director Jonathan] Greenblatt said that “impact investing” — which considers environmental and social factors alongside financial returns — was “the latest frontier in the fight against antisemitism.” Impact investing, also known as ESG, which refers to environmental, social and governance investing, is a growing sector that encompasses more than $40 trillion in investments…“What they’re saying is you can’t have ESG at all – because it risks Israeli companies being caught inside of it and that’s intolerable – or you’re going to have to reimagine ESG so it doesn’t catch Israeli companies,” Lara Friedman, president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace, which tracks advocacy aimed at Palestinian activism.” See also ADL acquires JLens, entering the impact investing space (Jewish Insider) and Lara Friedman’s Twitter thread, ““For anyone who still doesn’t understand what’s going on: the ADL & friends are all-in  demanding: – either ESG across the board creates an Israel exception, or we will brand ESG antisemitic and wage war on it, in effect joining the right-wing battle against “woke capitalism.” This approach is just another way that legacy Jewish-US groups are working to guarantee ever-greater Israeli violations of Palestinians rights. & it is just another way that legacy Jewish-US groups continue to reward/incentivize Israel’s open embrace of racism/authoritarianism. And finally – this approach is the latest example of how legacy Jewish Americas orgs’ strategy of promoting “Israeli impunity, above all else” threatens basic values/rights that Americans – and historically, Jewish Americans – hold dear.” For more on Morningstar & ESG, see this excellent Twitter thread by Tara Van Ho. 

“The story of the 2022 midterms isn’t only that AIPAC and its allies swamped pro-Palestinian candidates with their spending. It’s that the progressive groups that might have shielded those candidates were too divided to do so. Unless those groups become more strategic, Congress will likely grow even more hostile to Palestinian rights in the years to come. And because candidates who support Palestinian rights tend to be the most stalwart defenders of economic, racial, and environmental justice, their absence will make the Democratic Party in Congress less progressive overall.” See also: US midterms: Three Palestinian-Americans secure US Congress seats (The New Arab) and Aipac, pro-Israel groups spend big: Key US midterm wins and losses (Middle East Eye)

“Jews backed Democrats over Republicans by a 74-25 margin, according to a GBAO Election Night poll commissioned by J Street, with 55 percent of voters citing “the state of democracy” as their top issue while 40 percent cited abortion…Eight-five percent of voters, meanwhile, said they were very concerned about antisemitism, with 76 who believed Trump and his GOP allies are responsible for its spike. Further, 74 percent believe Trump and the MAGA movement are a “threat to Jews in America.”…These concerns over democracy and antisemitism were captured in voters’ sentiments toward the American Israel Public Affairs Committee as well. Seventy-two percent of Jewish voters said they disapproved of AIPAC’s decision to endorse more than 100 Republicans who refused to certify the 2020 presidential election results…Eighty-nine percent of Jews believe it is possible to be “pro-Israel” and critical of Israeli policy…The majority of Jewish voters support restricting U.S. military aid to Israel from fueling the occupation. 68 percent of Jewish voters support the $3.8 billion in security assistance at the same level, while restricting it so it cannot be used to expand the occupation.”

“The ‘Palestinian Popular Conference,’ a coalition of Palestinian political and civil society activists, is planning a series of activities aimed at demanding general Palestinian elections and reforming the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), a source close to the coalition told The New Arab on Monday…In its final statement, the conference demanded the election of a new Palestinian National Council in general elections, organised across all places where Palestinians can vote. The Palestinian National Council is the highest legislative body and constituent of the PLO. Its members include representatives of most Palestinian factions, professional unions and civil society organisations and religious minorities.”

“Two separate and seemingly unrelated steps taken recently by the Palestinian Authority and its leader, Mahmoud Abbas, are indicative of the increasingly authoritarian and autocratic nature of the regime in the Palestinian enclaves in the West Bank…The second measure recently taken by the PA was blocking the Palestinian Popular Conference – 14 Million (named for the number of Palestinians worldwide) from being held in Ramallah. The idea behind the convention was to rehabilitate the PLO, initially by holding a pan-Palestinian election in which Palestinians throughout the diaspora and in all the territory between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea could vote for the Palestinian National Council, the PLO parliament…Despite the obstacles, the organizers decided that convention would go ahead as planned via Zoom and Facebook… What all had in common was the emphasis they placed on the importance of democratic general elections to create an elected and representative leadership for the entire Palestinian people: in historic Palestine, on either side of the Green Line, and throughout the diaspora…The initiative to rebuild the PLO aspires to overcome the split in Palestinian geography, society and politics. This split is also one of Israeli policy’s most conspicuous political achievements in the past 30 years. The PA’s oppressive actions are directly helping to preserve this Israeli achievement.”

“Israelis will be permitted to fly directly between Israel and Qatar during the soccer World Cup this month, officials from both nations announced on Thursday, in the latest sign of warming ties between Jerusalem and some Arab governments. As part of the deal, Qatar will permit Israeli diplomats, under the umbrella of a private travel company, to provide consular support to Israelis during the tournament. The Israeli public broadcaster, Kan, has also been allowed to set up a temporary studio in Doha to provide Israeli viewers with coverage of the matches…The Gulf state has ruled out full normalization with Israel until the creation of a Palestinian state. The gestures also have precedent: Israel and Qatar have publicly cooperated on low-level diplomatic and economic issues since the 1990s. But according to the Israeli Foreign Ministry, there have never been direct flights between the two countries.” See also Will Israel allow Palestinians to fly to World Cup from Ben-Gurion Airport? (JPost), FIFA announces Tel Aviv-Doha charter flights for Qatar World Cup (Al Jazeera), World Cup to bring thousands of Israeli fans to Qatar under new travel deal (Al Monitor)

“Israel, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates signed a memorandum of understanding today in Sharm al-Sheikh, Egypt, to accelerate the implementation of a cooperation deal on a water project in exchange for clean electricity signed in Jordan a year ago known as the Prosperity projects. In the 2021 agreement, Jordan committed to creating a solar facility funded and managed by the Emiratis and providing some of its output to Israel, and Israel committed to providing Jordan with 200 million cubic meters of water a year from its new desalination plant.” See also Herzog inaugurates first-ever Israeli pavilion at U.N. climate change summit (Jewish Insider)

“The writer and human rights lawyer Raja Shehadeh talks to Adam Shatz about his recent memoir, We Could Have Been Friends, My Father and I, which reflects on Shehadeh’s relationship with his father, Aziz, a lawyer who, before his murder in 1985, fought numerous cases for Palestinian rights and was one of the first to advocate a two-state solution.”

“The Other Israel Film Festival highlights state violence past and present, but can films funded by the government ever truly hold it to account?” 

“I started researching censorship of Palestinian children’s books out of concern that my forthcoming young adult novel, Ida in the Middle, could be attacked or banned because the protagonist is a Palestinian-American…I later spoke with many Palestinian kids with shocking stories of racism, exclusion and invisibility in US schools all of whom thought they were the only one – because no one talks about anti-Palestinian racism…What I’m finding in my research about censorship of Palestinians is concerning. Although advocates of intellectual freedom, freedom to teach and the right to learn stand up (appropriately so!) for books about Black, brown and queer communities, the intense, multilayered censorship of Palestinians goes virtually unchallenged – and, in fact, unnoticed.”

“In recent years, Israel and India have cultivated a very public strategic alliance, born from the political ambitions of both Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and newly re-elected Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Against the backdrop of flourishing far-right nationalism and authoritarianism, the governments of both countries have also increasingly cracked down on civil society, harshened measures in occupied and disputed territory, and stepped up Islamophobic rhetoric and policies. Azad Essa, a New York-based journalist and the author of “Hostile Homelands: The New Alliance Between India and Israel,” argues that “At the heart of this new alliance is Islamophobia, and [the fact] that both Zionism and Hindutva are pushing colonial and expansionist ideas. Both are ethnonationalist ideologies with an emphasis on race, territory, and nativism.” To understand more about the political, economic, and cultural ramifications of India and Israel’s ties, +972 Magazine spoke with Essa about the relationship between Hindutva and Zionism, and the growing extremism in the Indian and Jewish diasporas.”