In the context of the Arab-Israeli conflict, self-proclaimed human rights groups often fail to denounce acts of violence against Israelis. Some even minimize or incite terrorism. Worse yet, some NGOs have alleged ties to terrorist organizations.
Human Rights Watch’s October 2018 report “Two Authorities, One Way, Zero Dissent: Arbitrary Arrest and Torture Under the Palestinian Authority and Hamas” contains a number of obvious omissions and reflects an absence of serious analysis
On November 22, 2018, B'Tselem published a report that utilized a flawed methodology, minimized the context of violence and terror, belittled the human rights of Israeli civilians living in close proximity to the border, and ignored Hamas and other Palestinian terror groups’ incitement to violence against Israel.
From April 29 – May 6, 2018, the Center for Constitutional Rights led a trip to Israel and the West Bank labeled as the “Justice Delegation.” This trip, made up of self-proclaimed social justice advocates, claimed to provide a “better understand[ing of] the human rights situation in Israel and Palestine.” In sharp contrast, participants met exclusively Palestinian and Israeli organizations that promote a one-sided Palestinian narrative of the conflict.
According to the US Department of Justice, NPA provided “material support” to Iran, Hamas, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) – designated terrorist organizations under US law. As a result of these partnerships, in March 2018, NPA settled a civil-fraud suit, paying a $2 million settlement to the US.
On April 3, 2018, Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued an “analysis” of the March 30, 2018 events along the Israel-Gaza border. Like other HRW responses, this latest publication lacks credible methodology and manipulates the presentation of facts and law to advance a political narrative rather than engage in professional human rights research.
In March 2018, the NGO umbrella group known as Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict (Watchlist) published a Policy Note urging the UN Secretary General to add Israel, Myanmar, and others to a list of “grave violators” of children’s rights. Terror groups, including Hamas and Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), are not mentioned in Watchlist’s publication.
This report provides background on the situation of women and women’s groups within Palestinian society. The report analyses the highly restrictive and coercive civil space and provides an overview of Palestinian female role models, the vast majority of whom are celebrated for their participation in violent “resistance.” The report also looks at the role of the international community in perpetuating this state of affairs, whether through funding of radical Palestinian NGOs, or through granting international legitimacy to these groups in multilateral forums such as the UN.
The Palestinian non-governmental organization (NGO) Addameer published “The Israeli Military Court System.” This report claims to present a number of faults with the Israeli justice system in the West Bank and implies that Israeli courts do not have the right to prosecute Palestinians committing acts of terrorism. The report goes on to make a number of false legal claims regarding the implementation of law and the Israeli military courts in the West Bank – emblematic of the NGO’s contextually, factually, and legally misleading campaigns.
A number of European governments have joined the US and others in demanding that the Palestinian Authority (PA) end its policy of paying salaries to, and hence incentivizing, Palestinian prisoners convicted of terror crimes. Yet, in sharp contrast, a number of Palestinian non-governmental organizations (NGOs) receiving European government funding under the banner of human rights assert that terrorists have a “right” to receive salaries and that suspending these payments is a violation of international law.
A number of government-funded Palestinian and European NGOs repeatedly manipulate human rights through the use of “resistance” rhetoric, blurring the lines between violence and nonviolence, denigrating security concerns, and legitimizing attacks against civilians. Some of these groups also have ties to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) – a designated terrorist organization by the EU, U.S., Canada, and Israel.