Promoting the "Naqba Narrative"
Promoting the "Naqba Narrative"
In advance of Israeli Independence Day, NGO Monitor has documented a number of Israeli NGOs (non-governmental organizations) that mourn the establishment of the state of Israel as a “Nakba” (“catastrophe” in Arabic) and actively promote a Palestinian “right of return,” which, if implemented, would effectually mean the elimination of Israel as a Jewish state. Such efforts are made possible by the extensive funding provided by foreign governments, mainly European (see below for funding details).

These NGOs similarly refer to all Jewish aspects of the state of Israel as inherently racist, thereby denying the Jewish right to self-determination and misrepresenting the robustness of Israeli democracy.

These goals fundamentally contradict the two-state framework backed by the international community, including their European donors.

NGO Monitor's detailed research shows that the following NGOs promote divisive campaigns that fundamentally reject the legitimacy of Israel as a Jewish state:

1. Zochrot - Zochrot (Hebrew for “remembrance”) is an Israeli NGO that aims to “raise public awareness of the Palestinian Nakba” and to “recogniz[e] and materializ[e] the right of return.”

  • Zochrot supports a “One State Solution” or a “de-Zionized Palestine,” and refers to Israel as having an “ethnicized and racialized Zionist” system.
  • In May 2014, Zochrot launched a smartphone app, “iNakba,” featuring an interactive map and photos of Palestinian villages from 1948, as a means to promote and amplify its ideology.
  • In March 2015, Zochrot, together with Palestinian NGO BADIL went on a speaking tour across the United States to discuss “the ongoing Nakba affecting Palestinians both in Palestine and in the diaspora.”According to the event flyer, “Presentations will aim to provide a historical overview of the Nakba and the Right of Return, the forcible displacement of Palestinian since before 1948 and continuing today, and the practicalities of return for refugees. In turn, American audiences will have focused time to consider their role in supporting the call for the Right of Return and how to integrate the Nakba into U.S.-based activism.” See here for more on Zochrot’s support for “One-State.”
  • Funding for Zochrot’s campaigns mostly comes from powerful European Catholic and Protestant aid organizations. All of these organizations are funded by European governments that officially support a two-state framework. Donors in 2012-2014 include:Germany (via Rosa Luxemberg Foundation andMisereor), Finland (via Finn Church Aid), Belgium (viaBroederlijk Delen), Netherlands (via ICCO),Switzerland (via HEKS), Ireland (via Trocaire), UK (viaChristian Aid), France (CCFD), Mennonite Central Committee, and Oxfam Great Britain.

2. Adalah claims to be “an independent human rights organization and legal center” that “promote[s] and defend[s] the rights of Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel.” At the same time, it attempts to portray Israel as undemocratic and racist – a tactic it frequently employs at the UN and in other international platforms. Adalah issues statements with the aim of eradicating the Jewish character of Israel.

3. Baladna claims to work “to enable and strengthen the Arab youth’s understanding and application of the principles of democracy and gender equality, pluralism and tolerance, youth empowerment and community building, as it is part of a growing trend towards building independent institutions and striving to equalize the Palestinian community's relationship with the State.”

4. Combatants for Peace (CfP) – While CfP claims to “allow each side to understand the other’s narrative,” its activities reflect a strong affiliation with the Palestinian agenda and narrative, placing most of the blame for the conflict on “the occupation.”

5. +972 Magazine claims to be “an independent, blog-based web magazine” that is “jointly owned by a group of journalists, bloggers and photographers whose goal is to provide fresh, original, on-the-ground reporting and analysis of events in Israel and Palestine.”