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A political source said Saturday evening that the bill regarding civil society organizations will not be raised tomorrow in the Ministerial Committee on Legislation and that the issue will be examined in depth anew. The source added that "the bill will be reexamined in light of the concern expressed by several countries to Israel."
Earlier, posted in Walla! Over the weekend, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock sent a direct message to Foreign Minister Eli Cohen expressing deep concern about the bill limiting donations to civil society organizations, which was scheduled to be discussed tomorrow by the Ministerial Committee on Legislation. In addition, a senior U.S. official told Walla! "We told Israel that continuing to promote the bill could blow up in their faces internationally."
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock27.5.23 (Photo: Reuters)
The message conveyed to Foreign Minister Cohen is part of an international effort by the United States, the European Union, Germany, France and other countries that are pressuring the Israeli government in quiet and public talks to remove the bill from the agenda.
In recent days, international pressure has become more public. On Wednesday, a State Department spokesman said at a daily briefing to reporters that "the United States believes that civil society organizations are critical to democracy and should be allowed to operate and raise funds around the world without interference."
Over the weekend, the ambassadors of Sweden, Norway, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and Belgium tweeted against the bill. In nearly identical tweets, the ambassadors stressed that they were concerned about the bill because civil society organizations are very important to democracy.
Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, Ben Gurion Airport, February 2, 2023 (Photo: Reuven Castro)
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The intention to bring the bill up for discussion in the Ministerial Committee on Legislation caused tension between Israel and several of its allies around the world, including the United States, Germany and France. Advancing the law in the Knesset could lead to a political crisis with Western countries. The Foreign Minister's Office confirmed that Germany's foreign minister had approached Cohen.
The bill, initiated by MK Ariel Kellner (Likud), states that an NGO that receives a donation from a foreign government will not be recognized as a public institution or as a non-profit institution. In addition, such an association, according to the bill, will be subject to a tax of 65% on its income, and donors to it will not be entitled to a tax credit.
Kellner raised the bill specifically to try to harm NGOs identified with the left and the struggle against the occupation or those that oppose the legal coup. Similar bills have been proposed in the past but have been repeatedly blocked due to international pressure.
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