October 7, 2023, marked the bloodiest day for Jews since the Holocaust. The massacre and atrocities committed by Hamas terrorists and their allies demonstrated their genocidal aims. However, what followed in the days and weeks after was, for many, almost as shocking: the rapid and coordinated global response that sought not to condemn Hamas, but to isolate, demonize, and punish Israel and the Jewish People.
With a well-entrenched infrastructure, anti-Israel organizations behind the facade of human rights and international law quickly mobilized, almost immediately accusing Israel of genocide, demanding arms embargoes, and lobbying for international criminal investigations of Israeli leaders and soldiers. In cities across Europe and North America, demonstrations became outbursts of antisemitism and Jewish institutions were targeted.
To outside observers, the speed and intensity of this response were unexpected. But for those of us who have tracked the powerful global anti-Israel, non-governmental organization (NGO) network for more than two decades, this was not a surprise. The explosion of hatred, lawfare, and disinformation since October 7 was the result of years of careful planning, rooted in an ideology that portrays the Jewish state as a colonial aggressor to be dismantled.
Who leads this network, and how do we respond?
Where it Began
The modern NGO-led campaign against Israel became visible in September 2001 at the United Nations World Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa. There, at an NGO Forum held parallel to the official conference, over 1,500 civil-society organizations convened to craft a strategy that would weaponize the language and institutions of human rights against a single target: the Jewish state.
The final declaration, drafted and endorsed by leading international NGOs, accused Israel of being “a racist apartheid state” guilty of genocide and ethnic cleansing, and called for a comprehensive international campaign of boycotts, divestment, and sanctions (BDS). This was not simply a criticism of Israeli policy; it was an explicit attack on Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state and, by extension, a denial of the Jewish people’s right to sovereign self-determination.
Durban marked a turning point: Israel was to be delegitimized through a relentless civil society offensive. The framework was clear: renew the “Zionism as racism” campaign, portray Israel as a uniquely malevolent global actor, and use the terminology of international law – “war crimes,” “apartheid,” “genocide” – as tools for political warfare.
This campaign was conceived and promoted by some of the world’s most prominent and respected human rights and humanitarian organizations. Armed with multi million-dollar budgets and institutional credibility, they took the lead in embedding anti-Israel narratives into the heart of the international human rights system. Through their reports, lobbying, and partnerships with UN bodies and news media outlets, these NGOs elevated falsehoods and demonization into mainstream discourse, shielding terror and delegitimizing Israeli self-defense.
The goal was to isolate Israel diplomatically, weaken it economically, and ultimately criminalize its existence. Hamas’ October 7 invasion and the ensuing war presented NGOs with an opportunity to intensify the Durban strategy for eliminating the Jewish state.
It was in response to the nascent threat that appeared at Durban that NGO Monitor was established by Professor Gerald Steinberg in 2002. Our goal is to research, document, and expose this NGO network, its allies, funding sources, and activities, while driving policy change to eliminate government funding and hold them accountable.
The Role of US Funding?
US taxpayers have unwittingly contributed to this network, facilitated by insufficient US government vetting of partner NGOs and the behavior of US-registered tax-exempt charities 501(c)3s.
Terror-supporting NGOs: Both USAID and the State Department have funded Palestinian organizations that openly glorify terrorism – including those with convicted terrorists in leadership and as role models for children, and even hosted events and discussions with members of US-designated terrorist organizations such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad. In these cases, the disqualifying information was all publicly available, including photos of children smiling with terrorists and celebrating their release from prison, as well as a plethora of statements from officials of NGOs funded by the US calling for violence against Israelis.
The colossal failure – the financing of these NGOs – stems largely from ineffective vetting mechanisms that fail to adequately review the publications, statements, posts and other activities of potential grantees to ensure that they are appropriate partners and trustworthy stewards of US taxpayer funds.
BDS-supporting NGOs: Another dimension of this phenomenon is USAID support for international NGOs engaging in anti-Israel BDS and delegitimization. Often, this occurs when the US funds human rights or humanitarian work led by these groups.
Notably, while these organizations are ultimately focused on harming Israel, their immediate targets are often countries, companies, and institutions that work with or maintain ties with the Jewish state – including significant numbers of US firms. This leads to the absurd result whereby US taxpayers fund international – often European – NGOs actively seeking to harm US corporations and employers.
For instance, Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) is an NGO that received more than $350 million in US government funds from 2021-2024, despite campaigning for divestment from several US companies – including Ford Motor Company, General Electric, General Motors, and RE/MAX Holdings, Terex Corp., The Coca-Cola Company, and TripAdvisor Inc – because of their ties to Israel.
UN collusion with terror-linked actors: In addition to bilateral US funding, US support for terror-linked and extreme anti-Israel actors is also at times provided through UN-coordinated frameworks. For instance, NGO Monitor research has uncovered millions of dollars from USAID to aid organizations operating in Gaza that were selecting beneficiaries for cash assistance based on information provided by a Hamas-controlled ministry. These activities took place in the context of UN-coordinated aid programs.
NGO lobbying: US vetting policies are not formulated or applied in a vacuum. International NGOs are interested parties for preferential treatment by lawmakers and government officials, much like members of any other lucrative and well-organized industry.
For instance, five years after Norwegian People’s Aid settled a civil-fraud suit with USAID and the Justice Department relating to providing “material support” to Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist groups as well as partnering with the Iranian military, it received $1.1 million in new US grants for activities in Yemen. The decision was not only outrageous, it served as a reminder of successful NGO lobbying efforts that convinced USAID to reduce the period an NGO that has worked with a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) must wait before being eligible for US funding.
NGOs Operating in the US
The fact of growing antisemitism in the US is widely known, and the extent and nature of the NGO network driving it are the subjects of extensive research. The diffuse coalition of activist organizations, funders, student groups, organizers, groups providing legal assistance and more has come into greater focus, revealing more than 150 such NGOs operating in the US alone.
Relatedly, NGO Monitor has demonstrated that certain US-based tax-exempt 501(c)3 organizations and foundations are both bankrolling NGOs spearheading college encampments and similar intimidation tactics, as well as fundraising for terror-linked organizations in the West Bank and Gaza.
One example of US-based charities supporting terror-linked groups in Gaza is the Michigan-based non-profit, Rahma Worldwide. In 2023, Rahma Worldwide announced that it was partnering with the Kuwaiti Islamic Heritage Revival Society (RIHS) and the Gaza Ministry of Social Development (MoSD) to provide financial assistance in Gaza. RIHS was designated by the US Treasury Department in 2008 “for providing financial and material support to al Qaida and al Qaida affiliates” and “financial support for acts of terrorism,” and in November 2024, the US designated the head of the Gaza MoSD – Ghazi Hamad – as a senior Hamas official who has engaged in smuggling for the terror group.
Terror-linked NGOs: In addition, NGO Monitor has revealed the extent of terror-linked NGO activity in the context of antisemitic intimidation campaigns in the US, Canada, and Europe, including regarding recently designated groups like Samidoun.
In October 2024, the US declared this NGO a “sham charity” that was fundraising for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a terrorist organization that participated in the October 7 massacre and that has been designated a terrorist organization by the US since 1997.
While not necessarily widely known, Samidoun has played a crucial role in seeking to normalize Palestinian terrorism on US campuses and in public demonstrations, popularizing calls for “resistance”; legitimizing Hamas, the PFLP, and other terror groups; and distributing terror symbols and paraphernalia. Even prior to the Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) designation, documented research on Samidoun’s activities helped drive Stripe and PayPal to curtail Samidoun’s online fundraising, while Meta removed its accounts.
Next Steps
Weak and insufficient vetting mechanisms have led to millions in US taxpayer funds for NGOs that systematically engage in anti-Israel initiatives, as well as funding to organizations justifying and glorifying violence. The US must carefully review all funding to NGOs, and act on the ones that call for the destruction of Israel and that promote violence and antisemitism against Jews. Transparency measures that help identify where the US funds are going, including via the UN, will also reduce aid diversion to terror.
For instance, NGO Monitor’s research led to congressional scrutiny and alerted the US Secretary of State about funding to a Gaza-based organization that called for a “third intifada” and hosted members of Palestinian Islamic Jihad for a variety of events and initiatives.
Decades of funding with minimal oversight have created an environment in which international aid is routinely diverted by Hamas, whether through direct NGO collusion or a permissive infrastructure that enables abuse.
October 7 was not just a wake-up call for Israel’s security – it was a moral reckoning for the entire international system. In the aftermath, the machinery of human rights, humanitarian aid, and civil society were revealed to all as being deeply compromised. Beyond individual funding decisions by governments, systemic change through policy reforms is needed. European lawmakers have been introducing guidelines and establishing vetting protocols that reflect important recommendations, including prohibitions on funding groups that incite violence, promote antisemitism, or reject Israel’s right to exist.
In the US, policymakers must create and implement the detailed review mechanisms necessary to prevent future humanitarian aid to Gaza from being hijacked by Hamas or other terrorist organizations. Billions pledged for postwar aid are already being mobilized, and without aggressive oversight, the international community risks rebuilding the very infrastructure that enabled the October 7 invasion.
Financial commitments from the US to NGOs must be accompanied by clear accountability mechanisms, independent auditing, and political will to prevent aid abuse. Appropriations legislation must incorporate language that mandates higher vetting standards to safeguard taxpayer funds from terror-linked NGOs and organizations espousing antisemitism, promoting violence, and denying Israel’s legitimate rights.
For decades, many were unaware of the true intentions of the anti-Israel NGO network, or even of its existence. October 7 pulled back the curtain.
We must continue to expose the funders of hate and their allies, shut down their funding mechanisms, hold them accountable, and prevent US tax dollars from supporting their activities.
Olga Deutsch is the Vice President of NGO Monitor. Yona Schiffmiller is the Director of Research of NGO Monitor. Founded in 2002, NGO Monitor is an internationally recognized research institute that exposes the abuses of power of anti-Israel NGOs in government, on campuses, at the UN, and in corporate settings.
