Israel/Palestine: UN experts call on governments to resume funding for six Palestinian CSOs designated by Israel as 'terrorist organisations' | OHCHR - April 25, 2022 |

In October 2021, the UN experts denounced Israel's designation of six Palestinian civil society organisations - Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, Al-Haq, Bisan Center for Research and Development, Defense for Children International - Palestine, the Union of Agricultural Work Committees and the Union of Palestinian Women Committees - as terrorist organizations. Israel's designation enables it to close the organisations, seize their assets, end their work and charge their leadership and staff with terrorist offences.

"Israel has had six months to substantiate its accusations and it has failed to deliver," the experts said. "We call on the funding governments and international organisations to swiftly conclude that Israel has not established its allegations and to announce that they will continue to financially and politically support these organisations and the communities and groups they serve."

Although Israel has not substantiated its allegations publicly or to the funding governments and international organizations, several of the funders have delayed their contributions to the Palestinian organisations while they investigate these claims. The European Union has formally suspended its funding for two of these organisations. This has undermined the work of these Palestinian organisations and has had an incalculable impact on the communities they support. There has been a lack of clarity about the duration of these steps, the experts said.

"We are deeply disturbed by Israel's apparent misuse of anti-terrorism legislation to attack some of the leading civil society organisations in Palestine. Such misuse must be rejected and countered," the experts said.