
Israel's Tax Authority, acting on instructions from Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, revokes Amnesty International's tax benefit due to organization's anti-Israel activities, support for BDS.
Several months ago, Smotrich created a special staff to examine the move, which was finalized Monday.
"Whoever acts against the State of Israel will not be eligible for benefits from the State of Israel," Smotrich stressed.
Activist Shai Glick, CEO of the B'tsalmo human rights organization, which fought many years to revoke Amnesty's tax benefit in Israel, said, "Whoever slanders Israel and claims that it carries out war crimes and calls for a boycott on it should not be receiving a penny of public funds. I thank my good friend Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich very much for fighting to remove the funding and committing to continuing the public's struggle. Whoever incites and acts against the State of Israel, and calls to boycott it, should not receive a penny of public funding."
"I call on the leaders of Amnesty Israel, after they were removed from the international organization due to claims that they are not anti-Israel enough, to understand the message that it does not matter how much you act against the State, the antisemites of the world will hate you. I call on them to begin to act for the benefit of the State of Israel and against terror and antisemitism. There is enough important work in the field."
Earlier this month, reports said that Amnesty International suspended its Israeli branch, citing "anti-Palestinian racism."
“Its efforts to publicly undermine the findings and recommendations of Amnesty’s 2022 report on Israel’s Apartheid against Palestinians and, more recently, Amnesty’s 2024 report on Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, have been deeply prejudicial to Amnesty’s human rights mission, threatening our credibility, integrity, and operational coherence,” wrote Amnesty International interim international chairman, Tiumalu Lauvale Peter Fa’afiu, in an internal letter dated January 6 and obtained by The New York Post.
“We take this action in response to evidence of endemic anti-Palestinian racism within AI Israel, which violates core human rights principles and Amnesty values,” Fa’afiu added.
The suspension, set to last two years, includes a review process to determine whether the branch will be reinstated or permanently banned. Israel retains the right to appeal the decision.
Last year, Finance Ministry Director-General Shlomi Heizler summoned Amnesty International's Israel branch to a hearing before a decision to revoke its tax benefits in light of the fact that the organization calls for a boycott and arms embargo on Israel, and therefore is in violation of the Boycott Law.
According to the report, in the summons letter, Heizler noted the complaints against Amnesty Israel, while trying to refute an argument for the differences between calls by Amnesty International and its Israeli branch.
Among other things, it was noted that the organization published Amnesty International's call for an arms embargo on Israel and a boycott of sites in Judea, Samaria, and Jerusalem by tourism companies on its website.
"All of Amnesty International's calls appear on Amnesty Israel's website and are in practice published by it in a way that constitutes the knowing publication of calls to boycott Israel," the Ministry Director-General wrote.
In July 2023, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich ordered the Tax Authority to open an inquiry into revoking Amnesty's tax benefits.
According to the summons letter, 80% of the Israeli organization comes from Amnesty International: "The scope of the funding attests to the fact that Amnesty Israel relies on Amnesty International's funding. Therefore questions arise regarding Amnesty Israel's independence which is manifested in the intentional blurring of the line between the Israeli organization and the international one when it comes to Amnesty International's calls against Israel."