15 May 2005:
MERCY CORPS: HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE,
MARRED BY ANTI-ISRAELI PROPAGANDA

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Mercy Corps is a major NGO providing humanitarian assistance around the world, including in the Darfur war zone, and in the tsunami disaster areas. However, like other such organizations, its good works are marred by political propaganda related to the Arab-Israeli conflict that fuels violence and hatred. (For other examples, see http://www.ngo-monitor.org/editions/v3n05/NGOMonitorTsunamiGuide.htm)

The descriptions of the Mercy Corps humanitarian projects to aid Palestinians include biased claims blaming Israel exclusively for poverty and suffering, ignoring the rampant corruption of the Palestinian Authority, and the campaign of terrorism directed against Israeli civilians. In one report, Mercy Corps claims: "As a result of the severe restrictions placed on Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza, the UN and other agencies have identified serious micronutrient deficiencies among Palestinian children..." Beyond these politically-charged allegations, there is no independent analysis, no evidence to ascribe this situation to Israeli policies, and no effort to examine Israeli efforts to alleviate Palestinian suffering.

In a second example, Mercy Corps claims: "Over the past decade, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) began implementing a closure system in the West Bank to regulate Palestinian movement ... through a series of roadblocks and military checkpoints. In the past three years access and movement for Palestinians within the West Bank has been crippled by more than 700 IDF barriers and checkpoints. The massive wall the Israeli Government is building will further separate Palestinian communities, sever social and economic links and block access to critical health and education services." No mention is made of the Palestinian terror campaign that has killed over 1000 Israelis since 2001, most of them civilians riding in busses, going to schools, and eating in cafes.

Such partisan ideological and political attacks against Israel undermine the credibility of Mercy Corps, and are counterproductive to the goals that this organization claims to pursue.