i24 News – The US civilian foreign intelligence service, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), could not validate Israel’s controversial designation of six Palestinian NGOs as “terrorist organizations.”
Still, the finding did not lead to any official criticism by the United States of the Israeli classifications.
In October, Israel labeled as terror groups Addameer, Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, Al-Haq, the Bisan Center for Research and Development, Defense for Children International–Palestine, the Union of Agricultural Work Committees, and the Union of Palestinian Women Committees.
After international condemnation of the blacklisting – including from US lawmakers, European Union governments, and the United Nations – Israel earlier this year passed intelligence about the designations to Washington.
Israel claims that the institutions are front groups for the leftist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, which has a paramilitary branch.
The CIA report “doesn’t say that the groups are guilty of anything,” a source said.
Despite the findings and numerous states rejecting Israel’s blacklisting as unfounded, Washington refrained from taking a position on the matter.
“The reality here is that the United States has for too long turned a blind eye, and in some cases even green-lighted, quite serious Israeli government abuses,” said Omar Shakir, Israel/Palestine director of Human Rights Watch.
“The position toward the Palestinian human rights organizations highlights a much larger failing in US government policy on the Israeli-Palestinian issue and puts the United States squarely out of touch with the consensus in the human rights movement.”
If it doesn’t meet their narrative, change the facts!