Illegal Settlement Finance and Money Laundering Unprosecuted but Noticed

IRmep's research, Freedom of Information Act and legal filings urging criminal prosecution of illegal settlement money laundering and misuse of IRS tax exemptions are profiled this week in the Dutch online news portal  "MENASSAT"

http://tiny.cc/mena_irmep

Lawsuit against charities failed 

In 1984, a lawsuit was filed by Americans, Palestinians and Israelis challenging the tax-exempt status of six US charities-the Jewish National Fund (JNF), the Jewish Agency American Section (JA), the World Zionist Organization American Section (WZO), the United Israel Appeal (UIA), the United Jewish Appeal (UJA), and Americans for a Safe Israel.

The plaintiffs  included Charles Fischbein, the resigned executive director of the Jewish National Fund in Washington, D.C, who had discovered that his contributions for the construction of a playground in Kiryat Shmona in northern Israel had in fact been used to build an Israeli army staging area for the occupation of southern Lebanon.

The lawsuit was dismissed on a procedural technicality because the judge denied the plaintiffs "standing," ruling that the plaintiffs suffering wouldn't be reversed or alleviated by shutting down the charitable donations.

In addition, the Institute for Research: Middle Eastern Policy (IRmep), a think tank focused on the intersection between US policy towards the Middle East and law enforcement, has documented the case that charities are engaged in violating both US policy and international law. IRmep filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) petitions to obtain information on the charities' activities with the US Internal Revenue Services (IRS), and used the records, in addition to eyewitness accounts of what the funds were being used for, to brief both the US Departments of Justice and the Treasury.

They also filed a formal complaint with a New York District Attorney in 2008, who has not yet responded to the legal move, claiming that the information provided is "under review."

The IRS records and subsequent investigations obtained by IRmep also showed that money was being laundered to fund the occupation. For example, former high-profile lobbyist and conman Jack Abramoff, who was sentenced to four years in prison in 2008 on criminal felony charges, laundered money into Capital Athletic Foundation, which funds an illegal settlement called Beitar Illit, as well as weapons and sniper rifles for the settlers.

'The elephant in the room'

IRmep showed that "not all illegal settlement funding flows from the US are the product of money laundering. A large number of organizations openly raise and disburse funds for the Israeli colonization of Palestinian territories. Although most misrepresent these activities to the IRS as 'educational' activities, others, such as the One Israel Fund, Inc. of Cedarhurst openly tout their efforts to transfer, arm, and promote Jewish settlements in occupied territories."  

These charities included Christian Friends of Israel, American Friends of the College of Judea and Samaria, and the One Israel Fund, Inc. The One Israel Fund's stated mission "is to provide essential humanitarian assistance to the over 225,000 men, women and children living in the 150 plus communities throughout Judea, Samaria and Gaza," but included "$1.9 million in year 2003 to finance illegal settlements, arms, 'Friends of the IDF' organization, and 'security equipment'," according to IRmep's report, which was sent to "key American officials."  

Later, IRmep filed Freedom of Information Act requests with both the Treasury Department and the IRS to find out if  the agencies were cracking down on the charities. The Treasury Department rejected the request under the Bank Secrecy Act; the IRS cited privacy laws and refused to comment further. 

"It is the elephant in the room in all discussions-the raw power of groups funding [the occupation] versus formal US policies,"

Grant Smith, director of IRmep told MENASSAT. 

So why isn't the Obama administration doing more to reign in these donations? 

Smith claims that this is an issue of political sensitivity. He says, the Treasury Department's branch tasked with "terrorism and financial intelligence," which was set up after 9/11 to crackdown on Islamic organizations, refuses to go after these Christian and Jewish charities that contribute to the Middle East conflict and is "un-transparent" in its dealings.  

Full Report at http://tiny.cc/mena_irmep