Israel Sets Up Secret Firm With Top Ex-generals, Envoys for Online 'Mass Awareness' Campaign 'To Fight Delegitimization'

The Strategic Affairs Ministry has set up a public-benefit corporation to engage in what it calls mass awareness activities as part of the struggle against the delegitimization campaign against Israel internationally.

• Israel's BDS blacklist, the fine print: Who will actually be denied entry
• Israel denies entry to European officials over 'support for Israel boycott'
• Israeli Minister axes workshop with biggest civil rights group over claim it 'defends terrorists'

Haaretz has obtained a list of the shareholders and directors of the company, Kella Shlomo, who include former Israeli ambassadors to the United Nations.

The government recently allocated 128 million shekels ($37 million) to the initiative, in addition to the 128 million shekels it will raise from private donors around the world.

The new initiative will not be subject to the Freedom of Information Law, in accordance with the secrecy policy of the ministry, which refuses to release detailed information about its activities.

The shareholders and directors include former ministry director general Yossi Kuperwasser; former UN ambassador Dore Gold, who is also a former adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; and former UN ambassador Ron Prosor.

They also include businessman Micah Avni, whose father, Richard Lakin, was killed in a 2015 terror attack in Jerusalem; Maj. Gen. (res.) Amos Yadlin, who heads the Institute for National Security Studies; and Col. (res.) Miri Eisin, who served as the prime ministers adviser on the foreign press during the Second Lebanon War.

Also on the list are a former National Security Council chief, Maj. Gen. (res.) Yaakov Amidror, and Sagi Balasha, a former CEO of the Israeli-American Council, which has casino magnate Sheldon Adelson as a major supporter.

Most refused to discuss the initiative and referred questions to the office of Strategic Affairs Minister Gilad Erdan.

The most recent data from the Companies Authority shows that the last report the company submitted to the authority came this past October. On December 28, the cabinet approved an allocation of 128 million shekels to the company over three years. The decision to provide the funding was made by the special procedure under which a government resolution is distributed to the ministers and goes into effect automatically if no one objects or demands a discussion.

According to the government resolution, the funding was granted to implement part of the ministrys activities related to the struggle against the phenomena of delegitimization and boycotts against the State of Israel. It says the agency will work to raise its portion of the financing for the initiative (around half) from philanthropic sources or pro-Israel organizations. A steering committee will be appointed for the initiative to comprise government representatives and representatives of the other funding partners.

Itamar Baz of the media watchdog website The Seventh Eye has been covering the Strategic Affairs Ministry, most of whose activities are concealed from the public. He reported Monday that while ministry officials have for months been advancing legislation that would exclude the company from being subject to the Freedom of Information Law, the law in any case does not apply to this new agency so its activities will be easy to hide.

He also revealed that Liat Glazer, the ministrys legal adviser, wrote in a legal opinion that the activities conducted through the company would be those that require non-governmental discussions with various target audiences.

According to a ministry document, Kella Shlomo people would work via social networks because the enemy directs most of its awareness and motivating efforts to this area. Similarly, the document, published by The Seventh Eye, says the organization was expected to carry out mass awareness activities and work to exploit the wisdom of crowds, an activity defined as making new ideas accessible to decision-makers and donors in the Jewish world, and developing new tools to combat the delegitimization of Israel.

A report in the daily Yedioth Ahronoth the day after the cabinet approved the funding described the initiative positively, saying it would raise the level of efforts in the struggle against BDS — the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement. Yedioth said the new company would provide a speedy and coordinated response to efforts to stain Israels image around the world, for example, in the event of a military operation, terror attacks or UN votes against government policies.

This would be done by launching online campaigns, lobbying, engaging organizations abroad and bringing delegations to Israel.

The Strategic Affairs Ministry declined to clarify whether the company would act in accordance with the principles of the Freedom of Information Law.

This is a joint initiative that meets all the requirements of the law for this type of engagement and is similar to other government initiatives like Taglit [Birthright] and Masa, the ministry said.

In the agreement with [the company] there are distinct control procedures, as defined by the Finance Ministry and the Justice Ministry during the joint work with them on setting up the project. It will be subject to auditing by the state comptroller, it added.

In addition, as the ministry leading the initiative, one that attributes great importance to it as part of the campaign against the delegitimization of Israel, the ministry has allocated additional control tools and functions to what is required. Both the ministrys legal adviser and its controller will sit on the steering committee managing the project.