One week after Defense Minister Benny Gantz designated six human rights organizations as terrorist groups for their ties to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the head of the left-wing activist group Breaking the Silence met in Washington with anti-Israel congresswoman Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.)

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Following his meeting with Omar, Avner Gvaryahu tweeted the two had spoken: "about the six Palestinian human rights NGOs [nongovernmental organizations] who were disgracefully outlawed last week, the ever-increasing entrenchment of the occupation and the surge in settler violence against Palestinians."

Thank you @Ilhan for an excellent meeting. We spoke about the six Palestinian human rights NGOs who were disgracefully outlawed last week, the ever-increasing entrenchment of the occupation and the surge in settler violence against Palestinians pic.twitter.com/83VLi1i245

— Avner Gvaryahu (@AGvaryahu) October 27, 2021

The meeting followed a contentious week in US-Israel relations during which the US State Department condemned Israel's plans to authorize the construction of thousands of housing units in Judea and Samaria.

At a press conference, State Department Spokesman Ned Price said Washington was "concerned about the publication of tenders on Sunday for 1,300 settlement units, for – 1,300 settlement units in a number of West Bank settlements."

"We also view plans for the retroactive legalization of illegal outposts as unacceptable," he said.

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A 2019 financial report issued by the New Israel Fund revealed that the left-wing NGO donated millions of shekels to leftist organizations that tried to meddle with the Israeli elections held in April and September that year.

Organizations like Zazim, Standing Together, and Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, used their influence to boost the Left's campaign during the 2019 elections. Records show that during that time, the New Israel Fund increased its financial support of these groups by 75%, compared to the same period in 2018.  

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The Zazim organization operated a transportation system that brought thousands of Bedouin voters to the polls, even though the organization was not registered as an active participant in the elections, something that would have exposed it to strict transparency rules.

On both election days, then-Central Election Committee Chairman Justice Hanan Meltzer issued a restraining order against Zazim's shuttles.

In 2019, Zazim received a donation of 1.2 million shekels ($356,000) – almost twice as much as the previous year and the highest amount since the organization was founded in 2016.

Standing Together, which defines itself as "a political movement that fights for a cohesive alternative to the right," called on the center-left parties' leaders and their representatives to commit to forming a government with the Joint Arab List.

Adalah, which consistently accuses Israel of war crimes, provided legal representation to the Joint Arab List during the 2019 election campaigns, as well aso to now-MK Ofer Kasif, who infamously stated that harming IDF soldiers is legitimate. Adalah received about NIS 320,000 ($95,000) from the NIF. 

Other organizations that received more than double of their yearly donations from the New Israel Fund were the self-declared "liberal" organization Mehazkim; +972 Magazine, a left-wing online magazine; Ikvot, an organization that provides legal support to far-left organizations; Kav LaOved Worker's Hotline, which represents illegal migrants and infiltrators, and Breaking the Silence, and advocacy group targeting Israel's security forces for alleged wrongdoings, which received a grant of about NIS 2.1 million ($623,000), one of the highest donations that the NIF gave to any organization in 2019.

Alon Schvartzer, director of Policy at the right-wing group Im Tirtzu, said, "It is illegal for a foreign company to intervene in the Israeli elections by funding organizations in Israel. This must be stopped."

The New Israel Fund said in a statement, "Israel Hayom's claim is entirely unfounded. From a simple examination of the data, it is evident that there is a difference in support for each of the organizations mentioned, in stark contrast to what has been described. The article focuses on a few of the hundreds of organizations that received support from the New Israel Fund. The NIF does not promote political candidates. It aims to promote equality and justice and a strong Israeli democracy."

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Ad Kan decided to seek an investigation into Breaking the Silence after its researchers reported that the NGO's project of "collecting testimonies" from IDF combatants went beyond testimonies pertaining to alleged human rights violations and included the collection of classified military information.

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Ad Kan is also alleging that Breaking the Silence is in close contact with foreign governments and has signed contracts with a number of European governments to supply them with information about IDF activity in exchange for funding.

Despite these reports, Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit decided to support the decision by the State Attorney's Office not to open an investigation because the matter was deemed "irrelevant to the public interest."

Now, the petitioners are pressing for an investigation. Ad Kan is filing the petition on behalf of a group of senior IDF commanders, including Maj. Gen. (res.) Gershon Hacohen; Brig. Gen. Amir Avivi; and members of the forum "HaBithonistim" who support an investigation into the allegations that Breaking the Silence is collecting classified military intel.

Ad Kan Director Gilad Ach said, "We are talking about security information, some classified, that raises questions about the State Attorney's Office's motivation to keep soldiers safe and back them up against organizations such as [Breaking the Silence and others]. "

Breaking the Silence, when approached for a comment, dismissed the claims from Ad Kan as "delusional."

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