Washington, D.C., July 12, 2022 — Ahead of President Biden’s travel to Israel and the West Bank, Paul Carroll, Director of the Charity and Security Network, released the following statement:
“President Biden should take the opportunity of his time in Israel and Palestine to uphold his commitment to human rights by calling on the Israeli government to rescind its politically-motivated terrorism designations of the Palestinian Six. Last fall, the Israeli government escalated a long-standing campaign to silence and discredit Palestinian civil society by designating six leading Palestinian human rights and humanitarian organizations as terror groups.
“Numerous investigations have found no wrongdoing on the part of these organizations, yet on the basis of secret ‘evidence’ and coerced testimony, Israel has condemned them. UN human rights experts, foreign governments, and civil society at large have spoken out against this blatant abuse of counterterrorism laws, yet so far the Biden administration has taken a position of callous ambivalence, offering neither objection nor support for the designations.
“These groups were targeted for no other reason than their work in support of Palestinian needs and human rights. If President Biden intends to make good on his commitment to a U.S. foreign policy centered on human rights, ambivalence is not good enough. Friends don’t let friends abuse counterterrorism laws to stifle humanitarian aid and human rights advocacy.”
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The Charity & Security Network is a resource and advocacy center working to promote and protect the ability of nonprofit organizations to carry out peacebuilding, humanitarian, and human rights missions and to advance national security frameworks that support rather than impede this work. Learn more about the Charity & Security Network’s work at www.CharityAndSecurity.org, and follow us on Twitter: @CharitySecurity.