T. Belman. Netanyahu must stand up to the pressure. Normalization can wait. Capitulation to foreign pressure invites more pressure.
The purpose of this bill was to reduce foreign influence.
Netanyahu, who has been working hard to score a meeting with the US President, had no choice but to capitulate and shelve the legislation.
Israel National News 28.5.23
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly agreed to shelve the Nonprofits legislation, which aims to limit the aid foreign governments and bodies provide to Palestinian Authority Arabs, following increasing international pressure.
According to a report by Galei Tzahal’s Yanir Cozin, a significant part of that pressure came from members of the Biden administration, who presented Netanyahu with an ultimatum.
According to the report, the White House made it clear to the Prime Minister that if he is interested in a meeting with President Biden and assistance in advancing normalization with Saudi Arabia, he would need to shelve the legislation that would harm civilian organizations immediately.
Netanyahu, who has been working hard to score a meeting with the US President and is aware of the vitality of American assistance in normalizing ties with the Saudis, had no choice but to capitulate to the American demands.
As reported, according to the bill initiated by Likud MK Ariel Kallner, a nonprofit which receives a donation from a foreign government will not be recognized as a public institution or a nonprofit and will be required to pay a 65% tax on every donation. In addition, its donors will not be able to receive a tax credit for their donations.
In addition to the Americans, several European governments vocally opposed the bill.
The French Embassy in Israel commented, “The draft of this bill is worrisome. We reaffirm our commitment to the crucial task of civil society in the life of every democracy, in Israel and in the entire world. Countries are responsible to create and protect the space and environment appropriate for their work since an active civil society can bring about a culture of peace and diversity.”
Swedish Ambassador in Israel Erik Ullenhag tweeted, “A vital and strong civil society is crucial for every democracy. Therefore we are deeply concerned about the draft bill on NGO taxation – would severely limit Israeli civil society. As a friend of Israel, I have raised, and will continue to raise, the issue.”
Correction,
The most Anti Semitic president was Franklin Roosevelt & maybe
Obama more recently!
The hard truth of the matter is that Israel still needs American refueling planes, ammo, F35s, spare parts, bunker buster bombs and such. Perhaps, even if the chances of getting any of it from the current US administrations are slim, Bibi still feels that he must play his part in the “We’ll have your back” game. Just like he was visiting Obama’s White House despite openly hostile and insulting treatment. But not a single square meter was transferred to PA during those eight very long Obama years. I hope that Bibi just feels that first of all he’s got a big Iranian fish to fry and everything else becomes less important in comparison.
Why meet with the most antisemitic US president in History, a lose, lose proposition.
Why meet with the most antisemitic in History, a lose, lose proposition.
I don’t understand why Bibi even wants an interview with Biden. What does he hope to achieve? Is it even true that he so wants to meet with Biden that he would shelve legislation meant to protect Israeli sovereignty?
If as reported above it is all true, then perhaps the PM has a specific goal in mind for the meeting.
The forces that want to harm Israeli national sovereignty, including the US State Department, the Biden foreign policy administration, the WEF and globalist NGOs, the “progressive” camp in Israel–all these forces cannot really be compromised with. The US government has been taken over by a radical left wing faction united with the global banking cartel and globalist billionaires. They don’t compromise. Their goal is to end national sovereignty and replace it with world governance. The countries that have elected nationalist leaders are targeted for takeover: Hungary, Georgia, Israel.
I do not know if the globalists will succeed. There are more of us than there are of them. But they are united and focused on their goals. We are not as united because there are so many of us to gather together, with multiple ideas of how and what to fight.
I admire the Israelis who are willing to stay the course, and keep the plan of judicial reform in place.
We in the US have tried compromise. There is no compromise possible with people who turn the entire resources of the US federal government against their political rivals. When our system of justice has crumbled, our elections are rigged, and the legal system is weaponized against dissent and against innocent civilians while protecting powerful criminals: in Israel you have a chance to prevent this! Use the government you elected to protect your country from becoming what has happened to the US.
How absurd is it that under foreign influence the govt which was elected to ignore such influence will set aside the bill preventing such influence from having a meaningful position from which to wield its influence.
This is yet another serious test of the govt’s serious intention of pursuing the will of the people which provided it a mandate to effect such changes as this and the judicial reform.
Should this report prove accurate, and the self imposed restriction by the govt from also acting upon judicial reform would suggest that it is, it will be yet one more failure by the Right to have their policies applied, even as they have elected a fully Right wing govt to do exactly this.
The shelving of these two vital pieces of legislation will have the effect of allowing the Israeli people to continue to be outvoted by foreigners. This is both unseemly and illiberal, just as it is also a serious defeat for this govt imposed upon itself by this govt.
The answer is as plain as a pikestaff.
Take the US legislation against foreign NGO’s, agents etc, and translate into Hebrew and pass through Knesset. Israel has enough clever lawyers to stretch such legislation by case law to get at its kibbitzing enemies.