Why Israel is calling Palestinian rights groups 'terrorists'

In October, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz declared six Palestinian civil society organizations “terror groups." These groups work in issue areas like women’s rights, children’s rights, and agricultural labor. The "terror" designation is based on alleged connections to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a small political faction. But so far, Israel’s evidence has failed to convince many international leaders. In this episode of Unsettled, we look closely at one of those groups, Al-Haq: its founding principles, its role in Palestinian society, and the impact of Israel's terror designation on its ability to continue documenting Israeli human rights abuses. 

This episode was produced by Ilana Levinson and features Jonathan Kuttab and Khaled Elgindy.

Archival footage courtesy of Al-Haq. 

RESOURCES

Tareq Baconi: Hamas, Explained (Unsettled Podcast, 5/17/21)

‘They targeted us for one reason: We’re succeeding in changing the paradigm’ (Yuval Abraham, +972 Magazine, 10/25/21)

Israeli dossier on rights groups contains little evidence (Joseph Krauss, AP, 11/6/21)

Israel/OPT: Designation of Palestinian civil society groups as terrorists a brazen attack on human rights (Amnesty International, 10/22/21)