The Ad Kan watchdog group and Choose Life forum that works with bereaved families presented a report at a special Knesset meeting Monday on their investigation into the alleged misuse of state funds that may have ended up reaching Hamas.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
An investigation by Channel 13 News claimed that taxpayer funds secured by the Arab party in the coalition, Ra'am, for a non-governmental organization aimed at helping orphans could have actually reached the hands of Hamas after footage emerged showing one of the NGO's supposed employees attending a Hamas event in Gaza.
The Knesset meeting on Monday, which was organized by Religious Zionist Party leader Bezalel Smotrich, was attended, among others, by senior lawmakers, bereaved families, and disabled veterans of the Israel Defense Forces. At the meeting, the party also launched its campaign "Israel is committing suicide" aimed at preventing future funds from reaching Ra'am as part of the new state budget, which is set to be approved this week.
"For the first time in the history of the State of Israel, the Israeli taxpayer funds a terrorist organization responsible for murdering Israelis," Director of Ad Kan Gilad Ach said. "The state budget mustn't be approved in its current form that transfers billions to the Islamic Movement. We call upon the Zionist components of the coalition to stop this dance of death and take action to rectify the situation. It is not too late."
Similarly, Devorah Gonen, mother of Israeli student Danny Gonen who was shot by a Palestinian terrorist in 2015, said: "How can it be that the tax money of the citizens of the State of Israel is transferred as part of the [state] budget to non-profit organizations that support terrorism and supports the children of martyrs in Gaza and other places?
"As a bereaved mother, the fact that the current government is willing to turn a blind eye … and continue to be a part of a system that supports terrorism is proof that it has no right to exist," she said.
Meirav Hajaj, mother of the late Shir Hajaj, who was killed in a terrorist attack in 2017, said: "We were able to prove that there are people in the Knesset who are in direct contact with Hamas officials. [Ra'am chairman] Mansour Abbas has openly admitted that he transfers funds to Gaza through the NGO.
"As such, we fear that the state budget overflows to the NGOs that aid Gaza. The NGO does not have a single donor, yet its resources amount to 50 million shekels ($16 million) a year. I do not doubt that some of the billions of shekels that will be transferred to Ra'am as part of the state budget will eventually be funneled to Hamas through these organizations. Under the guise of humanitarian aid, the money will go to Hamas.
"Our goal is to stop the transfer of the budget until they [the government] make sure that no funds allocated for Ra'am will be funneled to Hamas. We will not fund the murderers of our children. Coalition members must wake up and stop this budget [from being approved]."
The Likud Secretariat has called on Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit to launch a criminal investigation into the matter.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
