RAMALLAH: Israeli human rights organizations who devote all or part of their efforts toward protecting Palestinian human and legal rights delivered a strong protest to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against “the aggressive efforts of the government of Israel to hurt ‘Breaking the Silence’,” the daily Jerusalem Post reported on Monday.
Breaking the Silence, an organization comprising former Israeli soldiers, published a report on July 15 including testimonies by 30 soldiers who provided examples of the army’s illegal use of Palestinian civilians in combat situations, wanton destruction of homes and buildings and careless use of weapons. The left-wing organization Gush also warned the government that any attempt to muzzle organizations seeking to protect Palestinian human and legal rights would backfire. The Post on Friday said that Israeli officials are considering outlawing funding by foreign governments for “political” NGOs.
The attorney for Breaking the Silence, Michael Sfard, sent a letter last week to Israeli forces Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi, asking him to order Army’s Spokesman Avi Benayahu to stay out of the civilian debate over the findings of Breaking the Silence and to stop delegitimizing the organization. The public controversy over the Breaking the Silence report flared up again after Foreign Ministry officials protested to the Dutch and British governments for financing the organization.
According to reports, the Dutch embassy donated €19,995 in 2009 for the publication of the report on the latest Israeli offensive on Gaza Strip, while the British Embassy contributed £40,000 for the organization’s activities in 2008.
According to the report, the rights organizations, including the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, Bimkom, B’Tselem, Gisha, Moked in the Defense of the Individual, the Public Association against Torture, Yesh Din, Adalah, Physicians for Human Rights and Rabbis for Human Rights, charged that “the aggressive pressure applied by the Israeli foreign ministry and other government institutions aimed at silencing Breaking the Silence is dangerous and worrisome.
