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State Department Funds Anti-Israel Extremists
Posted By Ronn Torossian On March 4, 2015 @ 12:35 am In Daily Mailer,FrontPage | No Comments
The U.S. State Department’s Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) offers what they describe as assistance, training and support to groups and individuals striving to “create positive change in society.” MEPI works in 18 countries and territories, partnering with civil society organizations, community leaders, youth and women activists and private sector groups to advance “reform.” On their website, the State Department describes their efforts as an approach that is “bottom-up and grassroots, responding directly to local interests and needs.”
MEPI’s emphasis is on supporting citizen empowerment – they work directly and cooperatively with Middle East and North Africa-based (MENA) civil society organizations to create local and sustainable partnerships. Since 2002, the organization has contributed over $600 million to more than 1,000 grant projects.
Who knows how much American blood has needlessly been spilt, and how many billions of dollars in American interests have been lost as the result of America’s failed initiatives in the region?
Through its so-called “local grants program,” MEPI enables American Foreign Service Officers at U.S. embassies in the Middle East and North Africa to “identify and support key projects that promote civil society and the rule of law, increase political participation, empower women and youth, create civic educational opportunities, support independent media and foster economic growth and opportunity.”
Research now reveals that in Israel, MEPI operates in liberal projects which alienate the masses of Israeli citizens and have endangered the region. They have tried to “resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” provide extensive financing to projects focusing on empowering the Arab and Bedouin sectors, and promote political ability, governance and political reforms in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
More recently, the U.S. State Department, mainly via MEPI, has donated money to organizations and movements aiming to replace the existing Israeli government.
Among the meddling that has been done in the sole civil democracy in the Middle East:
•The OneVoice Movement: Their mission is “Anyone but Bibi.” The movement’s ideology is that “the first step toward a better Israel is the replacement of the prime minister. Benjamin Netanyahu has had enough opportunities to move Israel forward and has missed them all… the time has come for a new leadership.” Their declared aim is to “just switch the government.” This organization received $233,500 in funding from the U.S State Department in 2013. In years to come, we will learn how much they gave for this year’s election.
•The Jewish-Arab Center for Peace at Givat Haviva: “A place for developing innovative models for promoting peace and nurturing the understanding and connections between Jews and Arabs, deepening the character of democracy and civil rights in Israel.” In the current election campaign the center is working hand in hand with the well-financed American organization Ameinu, which the Washington Free Beacon recently reported promoted a $3 million effort for “a massive, nonpartisan Get Out The Vote campaign targeting selected demographic and geographic segments of Israeli society.” Givat Haviva received $44,114 in financing from MEPI in 2011.
•The Abraham Fund Initiatives NGO launched what it called a “nonpartisan” campaign to increase turnout in the Israeli-Arab sector for the coming elections, after a report surfaced about possible US funding for such efforts. The campaign includes running conferences for Arab students in colleges; media outreach; and work on a new poll that will identify the messages that would encourage the most turnout.
The State Department has also donated to organizations who promote boycotts against Israel, including:
The New Israel Fund/Shatil – Some of the organizations supported by the NIF and Shatil participate in and initiate campaigns to delegitimize Israel, as they practice. They are considered an extreme leftist organization, yet received $1,025,804 from MEPI between 2009 and 2011, and received over $200,000 in 2012-2013.
Al-Tufula, an organization that promotes the empowerment of Arab women, and the Galilee Society: The Arab National Society for Health Research & Services for empowering Israel’s Arab society are participants in the slander campaign against Israel, including in the filing of a written declaration to the UN Human Rights Council concerning Operation Protective Edge. The declaration called on the council to “condemn the deliberate, systematic and widespread targeting of Palestinian civilians and civilian objects … Establish an independent, international commission of inquiry… investigate all violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law committed within the context of Operation Protective Edge in the Gaza Strip.” Al-Tufula received $71,164 in funding from MEPI in 2013, and Galilee Society received $223,302 from MEPI in 2011-2012.
American meddling in Israeli elections and democracy is offensive, and wrong.
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