In a mirror image of the anarchist riots plaguing the US, ongoing protests focused in Jerusalem, occasionally violent and destructive, have been plaguing Israel. Though protests are a necessary aspect of a free society, civil disturbance aided by foreign meddling constitutes illegal insurrection. A recent article in Israel’s Channel 20 revealed that the euphemistically named New Fund for Human Rights is preemptively offering legal aid to protesters in case they overstep their legal rights.

The connection was first apparent last month when the protests began. The fund posted a guide to protesters on its Facebook page including a link to a more detailed guide. A Channel 20 undercover reporter recorded a phone call in which a New Fund representative with an Arab accent advised him on what type of graffiti he could make. The representative assured him that they would provide him free legal aid should he be arrested for protest-related offenses.

The fund is the legal arm of the New Israel Fund, founded in 1979 in response to Likud becoming the first right-wing government in Israel. In 2018, NIF’s total income was $32.7 million of which about 20% is used to fund NGO’s that demonize Israel and promote the Boycott Divestment Sanctions movement.

NIF tried to deflect attention on its website by rejecting a claim by Israeli Minister of Transportation Miri Regev that the fund was behind the demonstrations. While being interviewed on Channel 12 she claimed, “There is a campaign of incitement against the prime minister, which is fuelled by the New Israel Fund and the media.”

“While it is certainly true that the New Israel Fund global network and our partners support the peaceful protests against corruption and the Israeli government’s failed policies, Regev’s statements are a transparent attempt to smear and demonize a legitimate protest movement,” NIF posted on its website. The post did not explain how the protests would be “smeared and demonized” by being associated with the NIF which claims to be pro-Israel.