Right-wing organizations appealed to the Israel Police demanding action against a Christian radical left-wing organization that operates in Israel, after they claim that there is an increase in the phenomenon of bullying and harassment of soldiers in Judea and Samaria by its operatives.
In recent years, volunteers have been working in Israel in the EAPPI program.
This is a program of the World Council of Churches WCC, under which program volunteers arrive in Israel posing as tourists for three months.
Every three months a new group of about 30 members arrives, and they are divided into seven teams spread out in Yosh and Jerusalem, where the main office of the program is also located. The WCC Council is known as a body that unites under it thousands of churches around the world with hundreds of thousands of believers, and has signed a document "Kairos Palestine", calling for the boycott of Israel and participation in the BDS campaign.
Recently, the activists were seen alongside anarchists who came to riot in the area and harass the settlers and soldiers.
Responses to the Freedom of Information request from the relevant government ministries indicate that the EAPPI program and the World Council of Churches are not on the list of international organizations approved to operate according to the State of Israel's procedure for the activities of international organizations.
The immigration laws in Israel state that when it comes to organized activity - the program operators must submit an orderly application for voluntary activity in Israel and meet various criteria, among which the organization must be free of political and religious involvement.
Also, they must declare that they recognize the existence and sovereignty of the State of Israel, and accept the rules of supervision and work practices regarding the use of volunteers in Israel.
A soldier confronts an extreme left-wing activist after he broke into a training area (for illustration, the photos have no connection to the article), photo: Torat Hihima organization
After analyzing the details of the case, the right-wing organizations say that it appears that the organization does not meet these criteria.
In light of this, the World Council of Churches chooses to send the activists under the guise of a tourist visa, even though their activity is an organized activity that requires a special visa to enter Israel.
The activists even sign the employment contract, which shows unequivocally that they are active in the organization and not tourists.
Right-wing organizations believe that the organization is working to bring the activists into Israel while hiding the true purpose of their arrival.
The activists are instructed to hide that they are coming to act in the organization, and therefore the suspicion arises that the use of a tourist request is not accidental, but that it is a systematic and organized way to trick Israel's immigration authorities.
"The activists take part in various activities in the field in violation of the law. Among other things, their activities include: documenting IDF training in the Jordan Valley, documenting arrests and military activity, contact with terrorist organizers and terrorist families, participation in disturbances, interfering with soldiers and police, and more," they explain .
Now the line of right-wing organizations, which includes the DMU, the Legal Forum for the Land of Israel and the If You Want Movement, is demanding that the law be enforced against the left-wing activists, because they claim they are violating the law of entry into Israel.
Recently, the organizations sent a letter to the Israel Police Ombudsman in the Shi'a district and the Jerusalem district, demanding the arrest of the activists. Also, the Am Terze movement launched a wide-area campaign calling on citizens to call the police and report the illegal activities of the activists.
were we wrong
We will fix it!
If you found an error in the article, we would appreciate it if you shared it with us
