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Last update - 17:28 04/08/2009
Peace group: Ban of foreign aid to NGOs will harm hospitals, universities
By Akiva Eldar, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: Israel News, EU 

As the Israeli government steps up efforts to limit foreign funding for human rights group, an Israeli peace organization sent a letter to European diplomatic missions in Israel this week urging them to tell Israel that legislative action against NGOs may threaten the budget of universities, hospitals and other non-profit organizations.

The government has sought to limit the activity of Breaking the Silence, an organization that has published a damning report of the IDF's conduct during last winter's Operation Cast Lead in Gaza.

In the letter, Gush Shalom told the diplomats that "the discriminatory blocking of European government funding to a specific group of legal and legitimate NGOs may well result in a public backlash in the EU, which would force your government to cut all funding to Israeli NGOs, including to universities and hospitals."
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The group added that it had been opposed to campaigns which sought to withhold funding to Israeli non-profits in the hope that the Israeli government would also reconsider.

Gush Shalom also noted that the tax exemptions for non-profit organizations constitute indirect funding for organizations, and asked that the EU Commission warn the Israeli government that these benefits "could be withdrawn for the large number of Christian Zionist organizations in the EU financially supporting West Bank settlement activities."

Human rights groups in the European Union are reportedly preparing to launch a public campaign lobbying EU governments as well as the
European Commission to stop funding Israeli non-governmental
organizations.

Related articles:
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      1.   Gush Shalom shows its support for anti -semitic Europeans 14:50  |  arthur 04/08/09
      2.   Stop colluding with European anti semites!! 14:57  |  arthur 04/08/09
      3.   Arthur, anti settlement/occupation is not anti-semitism. 15:25  |  Northern 04/08/09
      4.   Arthur -- you`re illiterate, go to ulpan 15:30  |  Didi 04/08/09
      5.   Wonderful - Gov`t should hit these anti-Israel groups hard! 15:31  |  Kenny 04/08/09
      6.   EU money for easy fiction? 16:02  |  17 04/08/09
      7.   I dont think Israel cares about that just to crush their critics 16:10  |  Ezra 04/08/09
      8.   Criminal Pundik family would suffer ,finally 16:21  |  Absolute Sweden 04/08/09
      9.   its easy dont stop the funds tax them 150% 17:36  |  v hardman 04/08/09
      10.   FIND A WAY TO PUNISH THESE CRIMINALS! 17:40  |  SHLOMO 04/08/09
      11.   Duplicity and hypocrisy 17:57  |  Arie 04/08/09
      12.   NGO publication`s origins 18:02  |  Arie 04/08/09
      13.   Israel NGO`s 18:22  |  Mark Bernadiner 04/08/09
      14.   Most of these NGOs are not human rights groups 18:55  |  Joe Sittizen 04/08/09
      15.   ok limit funging ti AIPAC and CAMERA and 20:03  |  Labhras 04/08/09
      16.   Running to Eurabia when you are called out, LOL. 21:02  |  4:20 04/08/09
      17.   There are political NGOs and non-political NGOs 21:32  |  DJStahl 04/08/09
      18.   Well, do I have to ask the WIZO shop in our street where their 21:41  |  Andreas 04/08/09
      19.   DEMAND TRANSPARENCY! 12:16  |  nadav 05/08/09
      20.   tax-exempt status isn`t a political tool 22:37  |  Noam 05/08/09
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