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Tue, Oct 05, 2010 | The Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center

Pro Hamas Umbrella Organization Operating in Europe

The European Campaign to End the Siege on Gaza (ECESG) is an anti-Israel, pro-Hamas umbrella organization which participated in the Mavi Marmara flotilla. The ECESG is currently involved in organizing an upgraded flotilla, and in other projects to further isolate Israel, part of the campaign to delegitimize it.

Overview

The European Campaign to End the Siege on Gaza (ECESG) is an anti-Israel, pro Hamas umbrella organization operating in Europe. It participated in the last flotilla (which ended with a violent confrontation aboard the Mavi Marmara) along with a coalition of four other anti-Israel organizations led by the Turkish IHH. Since then the ECESG and the other coalition members have been intensively promoting new programs with the objective of embarrassing Israel and deepening its isolation. The coalition projects include an upgraded flotilla which has been organizing for several months as Freedom Fleet 2 (its organizers hope to include more than 20 ships from various countries), and sending a plane to the Gaza Strip.

The ECESG was founded in 2007, the same year as Hamas’ violent takeover of the Fatah and Palestinian Authority institutions in the Gaza Strip. Its declared objectives are “the complete lifting” of the so-called Israeli “siege” of the Gaza Strip and bringing humanitarian assistance to its residents. However, beyond that goal, which is supported by Western human rights organizations and activists, lie hidden its undeclared political objectives. They include strengthening the de facto Hamas administration in the Gaza Strip and making it difficult for Israel (and Egypt) to achieve effective oversight of arms smuggling and the infiltration of terrorist operatives into the Gaza Strip through the land crossings and by sea. While the ECESG advances its support for Hamas in the Gaza Strip, there is no mention on the organization’s website or in statements made by its senior members of similar support for the Palestinian Authority in Judea and Samaria (focusing on the Gaza Strip is characteristic of pro-Hamas organizations which do not publicly admit their intention to support it).

The Sfendoni 8000, the ECESG's vessel in the Mavi Marmara flotilla. The number refers to the 8000 Palestinian terrorists detained by Israel.

From the organizational point of view, the ECESG is an umbrella organization which links more than 30 pro-Palestinian and pro-Hamas organizations in various European countries. Some of them actually exist, and undertake broad anti-Israel activities, and some of them are virtual and even imaginary (See Appendix). The ECESG is officially based in Brussels but most of its activity takes place in Britain (a focal point for Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood’s European activities).

The ECESG represents itself as a European organization operating from Brussels, but an examination of its senior staff reveals that it is headed by a number of Palestinian activists, some from the Gaza Strip, most of whom live in and operate from London. In addition there are two British subjects, one the organization’s spokesman and the other a woman member of the British Parliament and former Minister, who represents the ECESG in meetings with world leaders. Some of the Palestinian ECESG senior figures are also active in other anti-Israel organizations, the most important of which is the Palestinian Return Centre (PRC).

In addition to the organizations within the ECESG, it is supported by more than 40 individual activists (“VIPs,” according to its website) who do not belong to any particular one. There are members of Parliament, especially those from the Labour Party and the leftist parties in Britain, Scotland and Ireland, as well as the green parties and environmentalists (See Appendix IV).

According to our information:

A. Organizationally, the ECESG is an umbrella organization composed of NGOs from various European countries. Some of them have their own networks and others have only a small number of activists, or even do not exist at all (some of them do not have an Internet presence and no information about them can be ascertained). The ECESG sometimes does not operate by itself, preferring to join forces with other pro-Palestinian, pro-Hamas organizations (such as Viva Palestina and the Free Gaza Movement).

B. Ideologically, the ECESG is heterogeneous, and had activists who are Islamist, leftist (especially from the extreme left), human rights activists, labor union members and even ecologists. However, in our assessment, the central factors behind it are organizations and activists affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas (although they are careful not to admit it). Their common denominator is their fierce opposition to Israel’s policies and in certain instances – although not all – their rejection of the legitimacy of the existence of the State of Israel as an independent Jewish state and homeland of the Jewish people.^[1]

C. The ECESG hides its true intentions. The ECESG and the various organizations operating within it represent themselves as promoting the so-called “Palestinian rights,” and make extensive use of the terminology used by human rights organizations, but its main objectives are really political, and include the defamation of Israel, eroding its legitimacy as an independent Jewish national state and strengthening the de facto Hamas administration in the Gaza Strip. It is not clear whether and to what degree the human rights activists who support the ECESG are fully aware of the organization’s Islamist agenda.

D. The nature of its activities: ECESG and the organizations affiliated with it conduct a variety of activities. They organize land and sea convoys which bring equipment and money for the de facto Hamas administration in the Gaza Strip; lead boycotts of Israeli products, institutions and figures; promote the demand for the Palestinian refugees’ so-called “right to return” as a way of causing difficulties for the peace process; influence political institutions and public opinion through demonstrations and disseminating “information;” hold seminars and transfer funds to Hamas institutions (some of the organizations and senior figures in the ECESG also have had ties to the Union of Good).

The building housing the PRC offices in London. The offices of the ECESG are located in the same building (Photo courtesy of Israel Channel 10 TV, August 25, 2010).

This report contains the following appendices:

A. Appendix I – The senior ECESG activists.

B. Appendix II – Past and present ECESG activity.

C. Appendix III – Organizations participating in the ECESG campaign.

D. Appendix IV – “VIPs” who support the ECESG.

Appendix I

Senior ECESG Activists

1. There is very little information on the ECESG website about its activists. Most of them are of Palestinian origin and some of them belong to other anti-Israel
organizations. One of the founders and most senior members of the ECESG is Amin Abu Rashed, who participated in coordinating its European aid convoy of trucks organized in April-May 2009, and was also one of the organizers of the Mavi Marmara flotilla (and sailed aboard the Sfendoni 8000).

Amin Abu Rashed (Al-Jazeera TV, April 24, 2010).

2. Amin Abu Rashed (aka Amin Abu Ibrahim), born 1967, is a Palestinian born in Lebanon who holds a Dutch passport. He subscribes to the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood. He was a member of the Dutch branch of the Al-Aqsa Foundation, a member of the Union of Good. The Foundation was outlawed in Israel in 1997 and declared a terrorist organization in 1998, and was outlawed by the United States in May 2003. In addition, the Al-Aqsa Foundation in Holland was included in the European Union (EU) list of terrorist organizations in June 2003. One of the prosecution’s exhibits when the Holy Land Foundation (HLF) was tried in the United States for transferring funds to Hamas, was a document signed by Amin Abu Ibrahim and bearing the address of “charitable societies” in Europe which operate “for the good of Palestine” (i.e., Hamas) (nefafoundation.org website). The document was published, and used as an exhibit in the successful prosecution of the HLF.

3. When the Al-Aqsa Foundation’s activity in Holland was stopped, Amin Abu Rashed became head of a Dutch pro-Hamas organization called the Palestinian Platform for Human Rights and Solidarity (PPMS). Established in 2005, it is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood and considered the most active organization of its type in Holland (nisnews.nl and ibloga.blogspot.com websites).

4. Other prominent ECESG operatives include:

A. Dr. Arafat Madi Mahmoud Shukri, born in the village of Atil in the Tulkarm district, is today a British subject, married and father of three. He wrote his doctoral thesis on the Palestinian refugees and a book about the status of refugees in Islam. He has been active in the ECESG for three years and is its head. He is also director of the Palestinian Return Centre (PRC), a London-based organization which is part of the ECESG campaign and is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas (See Appendix III). In May 2010 on the eve of the launching of the Mavi Marmara flotilla to the Gaza Strip, he met with Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan as head of the ECESG and PRC, and of other organizations from a number of European countries. He said that Turkey had an important role to play in lifting the siege of the Gaza Strip. He has recently been active in organizing the upgrade Freedom Fleet 2 to the Gaza Strip. He told an interviewer that IHH was one of the ECESG’s largest allies (www.silviacattori.net).

Dr. Arafat Madi (Picture from FGM website).

B. Amjad Abd al-Majid al-Shawa, born in 1971 in Gaza City. Active in the preparations for the Freedom Fleet 2. He has been mentioned as a director of an
office in the Gaza Strip belonging to a network of Palestinian NGOs (PNGOe. He is active in organizing and coordinating flotillas. In August 2010 he accused Israel of delaying the flotilla’s sailing and said that the organization was in contact with Cyprus, and should it continue refusing to let the flotilla sail from its port, the organization would appeal to Greece (Voice of Palestine Radio, August 22, 2010). On September 28 he also spoke to the media about the events of the last flotilla.

Amjad al-Shawa (Picture from Palsolidarity.org website)

C. Rami Salah Ismail Abdo, born 1977 in the Rimal neighborhood of Gaza City. Resides in Manchester, Britain. In May 2009 he was an ECESG coordinator for the dispatching of an aid convoy of several dozen trucks. He is also involved in preparations for the upcoming upgraded flotilla.

Rami Abdo (Photo from news.bbc.xo.uk website)

D. Sameh Akram Subhi Habib was born 1977 in the Tufah neighborhood of Gaza City. Resides in London. A journalist, he was the spokesman for the aid convoy organized by the ECESG in May 2009.

Sameh Akram Habib (Picture from Facebook)

E. Rory Byrne, ECESG spokesman is apparently Irish. He resides in London. He was one of the signers of a letter sent to the Wall Street Journal by the ECESG on August 4, 2010 in response to an article written by Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon. Interviewed by Israel Channel 10 TV, he denied links to Hamas. He said that the very idea that he might be linked to the Hamas movement was crazy (Israel Channel 10 TV, August 25, 2010).^[2]

Rory Byrne (Photo courtesy of Israel Channel 10 TV, August 25, 2010).

F. Clare Short is a British MP who was a Minister in the Tony Blair government, belongs to the Labour Party. She sailed to the Gaza Strip aboard the Dignity with 24 activists in November 2008. She represents the ECESG in meetings with leading world figures and headed the delegation of European parliamentarians who met with Syrian president Bashar Assad. She also participates in conferences and other events organized by the Palestinian Return Centre.

Clare Short (Picture from Wikipedia)

Appendix II

Past and Present ECESG Activity

Organizing land and sea convoys to the Gaza Strip

1. ECESG activity focuses on organizing land and sea convoys to the Gaza Strip, in collaboration with an international coalition of umbrella organizations and pro-Palestinian, pro-Hamas organizations and activists. Particularly prominent is the collaboration of the Free Gaza Movement (FGM) and Viva Palestina.

The Dignity arrives at the port of Gaza (Al-Jazeera TV, December 20, 2008).

2. In the past, the ECESG was directly or indirectly (by giving support) involved in four aid convoys to the Gaza Strip, primarily in collaboration with the FGM:

A. The Hope Convoy, May 2009: The convoy included more than 30 ambulances and trucks loaded with medicine and humanitarian assistance. The participants were human rights activists, correspondents and politicians who came from various places in Europe, met in Genoa, and from there sailed to the port of Alexandria. The Egyptian authorities posed difficulties and permitted only some of the convoy to enter the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing, while the rest returned to Italy.

B. Help in providing medicines for the FGM, which dispatched the ship Hope: In October 2008 the ECESG donated medicines which the FGM sent to the Gaza Strip (ECESG website, April 18, 2010).

C. Support in dispatching the Dignity, December 2008: A short time before Operation Cast Lead the FGM ship Dignity reached the port of Gaza with three tons of medical equipment. The ECESG sent medicines, its own activists and European parliamentarians.

At right, ECESG activist aboard the Dignity (Photo from the FGM website)

D. Dispatching the ship Spirit of Humanity, June 2009: The ship sailed for the Gaza Strip with medicines and 40 doctors, correspondents, parliamentarians and human rights activists. It was stopped by the Israeli Navy near the port of Gaza (Jerusalem Post, June 29, 2009).

The Spirit of Humanity (Photo from the FGM website)

3. The Mavi Marmara flotilla was organized by a coalition of five organizations led by the Turkish IHH. The ECESG also participated, sending the Sfendoni 8000. The flotilla’s objective, as described by Rami Abdo, a senior ECESG activist, was not only to bring humanitarian assistance to the Gaza Strip but to “break the siege” he claimed was imposed on the Gaza Strip by Israel (Hamas’ Al-Risala, June 3, 2010).

The ECESG's Sfedoni 8000

Planning an upgraded flotilla and other projects

4. Immediately after the events of the Mavi Marmara flotilla, the ECESG initiated a campaign to organize a new flotilla, “larger than the previous one,” called Freedom Fleet 2 (ECESG website, June 2, 2010). The preparations of the ECESG and other coalition organizations to raise funds and enlist volunteers continue. On July 31, 2010, a conference was held in Italy, headed by Muhammad Hanoun, ECESG representative for Italy.

5. The conference in Italy was reportedly attended by 70 representatives of various organizations and groups sympathetic to the Palestinian cause (according to the ECESG website). According to our information, the Italian ship Stefano Chiarini (named for a pro-Palestinian Italian journalist) is expected to join the flotilla. Rami Abdo, senior ECESG figure, said that the flotilla would be joined by an alliance of more than 240 Swiss institutions (i.e., which support the ECESG). There would also be dozens of institutions from Britain, German and Belgium (Al-Quds, September 7, 2010). An ECESG delegation visited Brazil to enlist activists for the flotilla from Latin American countries.

6. Amjad al-Shawa, the ECESG representative coordinating the flotilla, said that there would be many ships from European countries, as well as from Canada and the United States, and a ship of “European Jews who support the rights of the Palestinian people.” He said that there would be broad Arab participation as well. He noted that the organizers and activists were aware that Israel might attack them (Voice of Palestine Radio, September 7, 2010).

ECESG political and propaganda activity within the EU

7. In addition to dispatching land and sea convoys to the Gaza Strip, the ECESG is very active in propaganda and politics with the aim of enlisting European support to exert pressure on Israel. For example, on June 16, 2010, after the Mavi Marmara affair, an ECESG delegation met with parliamentarians in the EU headquarters in Strasberg where it updated them with its version of events aboard the ship. On the eve of EU Foreign Minister Catherine Ashton’s visit to Israel, the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem (June 19, 2010), ECESG activists sent her a letter explaining what they claimed “was behind Israel’s easing of restrictions of the Gaza Strip.” They asked her to demand that the blockade be completely lifted from the Gaza Strip (ECESG website, July 20, 2010).^[3]

8. The ECESG organizes delegations of parliamentarians and VIPs to the Gaza Strip where they meet with senior Hamas figures. During the second week of January 2010 the ECESG organized a delegation of 50 members, among them politicians and former ministers, who visited the Gaza Strip. Their objective was to collect documents and “facts” and to return to their own countries and the European Parliament to promote activity to “end the siege.” During their visit they met with members of the Palestinian Legislative Council, Hamas de facto administration head Ismail Haniya and UNRWA Director John Ging. They also met with representatives of Palestinian NGOs operating in the Gaza Strip. After the visit the ECESG issued a call to Israel to lift the so-called “siege” immediately, called for Israel to be tried for war crimes in the International Court, and for the suspension of all trade agreements between Europe and Israel.

Appendix III

Organizations Participating in the ECESG Campaign

List of organizations (from the ECESG website)

Overview

1. The ECESG is an umbrella organization for activists and more than 30 NGOs from various European countries, and also has umbrella organizations for its activities in Britain and Switzerland. Some of its organizations actually exist and are intensely active, and some are virtual or have only very few activists. Some of them hold office in a number of ECESG organizations and sometimes in other anti-Israel organizations waging a global battle to delegitimize the State of Israel.

2. The following are the organizations belonging to the ECESG:

Britain

The Palestinian Return Centre (PRC)

PRC logo

3. The PRC was founded in 1996 to raise international awareness for what it called the Palestinians’ “right of return.” The so-called “right” is not anchored in any international agreement and its realization is considered as a tool to change the demographic and political nature the State of Israel and destroy it as an independent Jewish state. Another objective of the demand is to pose serious obstacles in the path of an agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. On its website the PRC describes itself as an “independent consultancy focusing on the historical, political and legal aspects of the Palestinian Refugees…It specializes in the research, analysis, and monitor of issues pertaining to the dispersed Palestinians and their internationally recognized legal right [sic] to return” (www.prc.org.uk).

4. The PRC’s offices are in north London. In our assessment, it is one of the central institutions through which Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood operate in Britain. Several former Hamas activists who found asylum in Britain hold key positions on the PRC’s board of directors. Some of the activists have close relations with the Hamas leadership, including Khaled Mashaal and Ismail Haniya (www.nothingbritish.com, October 27, 2010). The PRC states that its activities are funded by contributions. It apparently has links to Interpal (a British fund which supports Hamas) and the Union of Good, an umbrella organization for funds and foundations which support Hamas (hurryupharry.org website, March 6, 2009).

Left: The building housing the PRC offices in London. It also serves the ECESG. Right: The door of the PRC's London office (Pictures courtesy of Israel Channel 10 TV, August 25, 2010).

5. The PRC engages in many political and propaganda activities aimed at senior British politicians and has the avowed intention of increasing awareness for what it refers to as the so-called suffering of the Palestinian refugees (with the hidden, undeclared intention, in the spirit of Hamas policy, of making it difficult for Israel and the Palestinian Authority to hold talks). To that end the PRC lobbies Members of Parliament and holds seminars and workshops where it provides them with “information” about issues directly and indirectly concerning the Palestinians. The PRC also invites Members of Parliament to participate in its activities, and gives them its publications and “updated information.”

6. The PRC issues two publications: A bi-weekly newsletter in Arabic called Al-Awda (“the return”) and one in English called Return Review. Both are sent to subscribers in Britain, Europe and around the world. The PRC also issues studies, position papers, books and cassettes.

7. Every year in May the PRC holds a large conference to raise awareness of the refugee problem. The first was held in Britain in 2003 and in various locations in Europe since. The invited guests are usually politicians, members of the European Parliament and various parliaments, intellectuals, university professors and clerics.

8. One of the most prominent people invited in the past was Sheikh Ra’ed Salah, the leader of the northern faction of the Islamic Movement in Israel, who subscribes to the radical Islamic ideology similar to that of the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas. Hamas activists from the Gaza Strip are also invited to PRC conferences. In 2007 the PRC wanted to invite Ismail Haniya, head of the de facto Hamas administration, to the conference in Rotterdam but the Dutch authorities refused to allow him to enter the country (hurryupharry.org website, March 6, 2009).

PRC demonstration in front of the American embassy in London (no date) (http://www.prc.org.uk)

9. The PRC works in close collaboration with the ECESG. The PRC’s operational director, Dr. Arafat Madi, is also the ECESG chairman. The ECESG offices in London are located within the PRC offices, and they have the same telephone and fax numbers. The PRC and ECESG conduct joint anti-Israel activities. For example, in April 2010 they organized a trip of 50 European parliamentarians to the Gaza Strip, including from the European Parliament, to evaluate the humanitarian situation following Operation Cast Lead.^[4]

10. The most prominent PRC activist is Majed al-Zeer, who is both its general director and a trustee. He was born in Bethlehem in 1962, and in the wake of the Six Day War, when he was five, his family left for Kuwait. Following Arafat’s support of Saddam Hussein, many Palestinians were expelled from Kuwait, and in 1991 his family emigrated to Britain. Majed al-Zeer has lived in Britain since then and considers himself a British Palestinian. Politically he is close to the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas, although he is careful not to publicly identify himself as a supporter of either the Muslim Brotherhood or Hamas. He has been a senior activist of the PRC since its establishment in 1996, and is prominent in various anti-Israel activities, including demonstrations, conferences and distributing publications.

Majed al-Zeer (globalmb website, June 1, 2010)

11. In November 2008 the International Arab Congress for the Right of Return was held in Damascus. Majed al-Zeer participated, sitting on stage along with Khaled Mashaal, head of the Hamas political bureau in Damascus; Mahathir bin Mohamad, former Malaysian president, known for his anti-Semitic remarks; and Ali Akbar Mohtashemipur, senior Iranian cleric and former minister who played a key role in the buildup of Hezbollah. In its official summation, the congress stated its support for inculcating the “culture of active resistance” [i.e., the culture of terrorism and violence to destroy the State of Israel] as the “best and shortest way to realize the return of the [Palestinian] refugees to their houses.” The participants also declared their support of the struggle of the Sudanese against “the various forms of colonial intervention.” They also stated that they were convinced of “the continuing and present danger of the role filled by Zionism in the division of Sudan and its subversion of its national unity…”^[5]

Majid al-Zeer (left), PRC general director, at a conference in November 2008. With him from left to right, are Mohtashemipur, Mahathir bin Mohamad and Khaled Mashaal (hurryupharry.org website).

12. Other senior PRC figures are the following:

A. Dr. Arafat Madi Mahmoud Shukri, PRC’s operational director, who is also ECESG chairman. He operates in both from the same office in London (See above).

B. Majdi Akeel, a Gazan who lives in Britain, who serves as the Manchester-area representative of Interpal (a British fund which support Hamas). According to an article in the Israeli daily newspaper Haaretz in 1994, he was a Hamas activist and lecturer at the Islamic University in Gaza City. In 1988 The New York Times also described him as a Hamas activist. His name was mentioned at the two trials of the Holy Land Foundation, an American fund which illegally transferred currency to Hamas institutions (hurryupharry.org website, March 13, 2009).

C. Zaher Birawi, head of the PRC’s board of trustees, is a Hamas activist in Britain who is also careful not to publicly identify himself as a Hamas or Muslim
Brotherhood activist. He comes from the village of Assira al-Shamaliya, north of Nablus in Samaria. At the beginning of the 1990s he left to study in Britain and settled there. He is active in Education Aid for Palestinians (EAP), an organization reportedly affiliated with the Union of Good. He is also head of programming for the Muslim Brotherhood Al-Hiwar television station and is spokesman for George Galloway’s Viva Palestina convoy which left for the Gaza Strip on September 18, 2010.^[6]

D. Ghassan Faour is deputy chairman of the PRC board of trustees. He was mentioned as having ties to Interpal and as being a key figure in the Union of Good (globalmbreport website, May 31, 2010).

E. Muhammad al-Hamed is chairman of the organization’s board of trustees.

Justice for Palestine

13. Justice for Palestine is an NGO founded in 2001, centered in Glasgow, Scotland. Its declared objective is to collect, process and circulate information about Palestine to organizations and the general public in Britain. It organizes events such as exhibitions and lectures about the Gaza Strip and collects donations for various “humanitarian needs.” It collaborates with various volunteer organizations.

Left: Justice for Palestine demonstration. Right: Justice for Palestine truck (http://www.j4p.org.uk)

Switzerland

Droit Pour Tous (Right for All)

Droit Pour Tous logo

14. Droit Pour Tous is an NGO based in Geneva and involved in anti-Israel activities. Its stated, long-term objective is to bring justice to the world. However, in reality it focuses on the Palestinian cause and the so-called “rights of the Palestinians in the occupied territories” in order to supply the Swiss with “information” about “the Palestinian problem.” It organizes demonstrations, conferences and exhibitions.

15. The organization president is Anouar Gharbi, an engineer of Tunisian extraction. He was mentioned in the past as a senior figure in Association de Secours Palestinians in Switzerland, a Swiss organization which belonged to the Union of Good (http://globalmbreport.com/?p=3270, http://www.droitpourtous.ch). He is also a member of Partners for Peace and Development for Palestinians (PPDP).

Droit Pour Tous—Geneva call to boycott Israeli products, such as dates (http://www.aqsa.org.uk)

France

The Charitable Council in Support of Palestine

16. We have no information regarding this organization. It may be an incarnation of Comité de Bienfaisance et de Secours aux Palestiniens (CBSP), a French fund outlawed by the US as being part of the Union of Good.^[7]

Le Franco Palestinien

17. We have no information regarding this organization.

The Netherlands

Het Palestijns Platform voor Mensenrechten en Solidariteit – PPMS (The Forum of Palestinian Rights and Solidarity in the Netherlands)

The PPMSHolland logo

18. PPMS is a pro-Hamas organization based in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, it was founded in late 2005 and is headed by Amin Abu Rashed, who subscribes to Muslim Brotherhood ideology.

Left: Demonstrator at a PPMS rally holding a sign demanding the so-called "right of return" (ppms.nl website). Right: Pro-PPMS rally organized by PPMS accusing Israel of genocide (PPMS.nl website).

Amin Abu Rashed at the fifth Palestinian conference in PPMS, May 2007 (www.prc.org.uk)

The Palestinian Forum for Rights and Solidarity

19. This organization does not have a website. The similarity in names suggests it may be a front or a branch of the previous organization (PPMS).

De Palestijnse Raad

20. We have no information regarding this organization.

Steun Palestina

The Steun Palestina masthead

21. Steun Palestina is an Amsterdam-based organization involved in anti-Israeli political and propaganda activities. With offices in Gaza and the United States, it collects donations and organizes pro-Palestinian events with other Dutch organizations. Represented in the United States by Col. (Ret.) Ann Wright, who took part in the last flotilla (but was not on board the Mavi Marmara).

A call to boycott Israel on the Steun Palestina website

Germany

Palaestinensische Gemeinschaft in Deutschland (PGD)

The PGD masthead

22. According to the PGD website, the organization was founded in 1996, after the signing of the Oslo Accords, to provide economic assistance and cultural activities for Germany’s Palestinian community of 70-100 thousand people. The organization members pay a monthly membership fee.

Anti-Israeli demonstration organized by PGD in December 2008 (www.linkezeitung.de)

23. The PGD’s director is Raif Hussein, born 1965, from Nazareth, who came to Germany at the age of 19. His deputy is Muhammad Nasser. Some of the other members are marketing manager Yousef Taha and finance manager Muhammad Afouna.

Raif Hussein (PGD website)

Palaestinensische Gemeinde Berlin

24. Palaestinensische Gemeinde Berlin is the organization of the Palestinian community in Berlin. According to its website, it was founded in 1996 to foster closer ties between Berlin’s Palestinians and Germans and to promote Palestinian culture. The organization’s chairman is Dr. Ahmed Mohsen, who signed a petition initiated by the FGM in January 2009 for a flotilla to the Gaza Strip.

Palaestinensischer Bund Deutschland für Rückkehrrecht

The Palaestinensischer Bund Deutschland für Rückkehrrecht homepage

25. This may be the Palästinensische Gesellschaft für Menschenrechte und Rückkehrrecht Deutschland, which, according to its website, is a tiny organization involved in propaganda activities against Israel. The website features a masthead which drips blood from the frame beneath the word “Invasion” and photographs of bodies of Palestinians, and accuses Israel of massacring civilians and of apartheid (http://pgmmenschenrechte.jeeran.com/palestine.html).

Palaestinensischer Bund Deutschland das Berlin

26. We have no information regarding this organization.

Arab Forum Germany

The Arab Forum logo

27. Arab Forum Germany is an organization whose stated objective is to promote positive dialogue between the Arab world and Europe. It apparently publishes an annual report which deals with various Middle East issues (http://www.arabforum.de/index-en.php). It is headed by Saleh Azzawi, its founder and publisher. He was born in Syria and has lived in Germany for the past 40 years. The editor-in-chief is Rainer Schubert, a German journalist who has lived in Berlin since 1993.

Sweden

Rättvisecentret för palestinska folket

The Rättvisecentret för palestinska folket masthead

28. This anti-Israeli organization was established in 2004 with the declared objective of encouraging popular support for the Palestinian people and “alleviating their suffering.” It organizes various events in Sweden, including rallies, conventions, book fairs, demonstrations, etc. It collaborates with similar Swedish organizations, including Sweden’s Islamic Federation.

Anti-Israeli protest organized by Rättvisecentret för palestinska folket in January 2009 (www.palestine.se)

Palestinagrupperna i Sverige (PGS)

The PGS masthead

29. PGS was established in Sweden in 1976 and has an office in Stockholm. According to its website, it promotes solidarity with Palestine and supports the Palestinian struggle for independence and the establishment of a Palestinian state. It also supports the development of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip through donation-funded humanitarian projects. The organization has 1,000 members in Sweden, and the activists mentioned on its website are Swedes. It has an office in Jerusalem (whose coordinator is Yvonne Fredriksson). It was one of several organizations which protested the opening of Swedish companies’ branches in Israel, and calls for a boycott Israeli products.

The PGS website calls for a boycott of Israeli products

ISM International Solidarity

The ISM logo

30. ISM Sverige is the Swedish branch of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), an allegedly independent, religiously and politically unaffiliated Swedish group. It has offices in Sweden’s major cities.

31. ISM is an anti-Israeli, pro-Palestinian organization which as been operating under the auspices of the FGM since 2001. According to its website, its objective is to oppose Israel’s policy (“the Israeli apartheid in Palestine”) through indirect measures. In practice, however, the organization’s activists take part in often-violent protests in Bil’in, Na’alin, and other conflict zones in Judea and Samaria (the protestors throw stones, metal pellets and Molotov cocktails and physically confront IDF soldiers—all under the heading of “non-violent popular resistance”). ISM activists took part in the Mavi Marmara flotilla to the Gaza Strip.

Denmark

The Islamic Council

32. We have no information regarding this Copenhagen-based organization. There is an organization in Denmark called Muslim Council of Denmark, an umbrella organization of Danish Muslims, whose spokesman is Zubair Butt Hussain (www.cphpost.dk). The name “Islamic Council” may refer to that organization.

Italy

L’Associazione Benefica di Solidarietà con il Popolo Palestinese – ABSPP ONLUS

The API masthead

33. This organization is in fact the Association of Palestinians in Italy (API), the Italian representative of the Muslim Brotherhood. It is also active in Italy’s Union of Good (http://globalmbreport.org/?p=3246) and has ties to the Hamas leadership in Damascus and the Gaza Strip. The organization took part in organizing the last flotilla to the Gaza Strip. It is headed by Mohammed Mahmoud Ahmed Hanoun, who recently represented the ECESG in a delegation which visited Brazil to enlist support for the upcoming “upgraded” flotilla. He also met with the Turkish ambassador to Italy and thanked him for the Turkish government’s support for the flotilla (June 30, 2010). The photograph is of Mohammed Hanoun with Khaled Mash’al and a communist Italian senator
(http://www.ict.org.il).

API leader Mohammed Hanoun (third from the left) at a meeting with Khaled Mashaal (http://www.ict.org.il)

Comitato Gaza Vivrà

The Comitato Gaza Vivrà logo

34. According to its website, Comitato Gaza Vivrà appears to be a radical left-wing organization politically aligned with Communist and anti-American organizations. The organization’s website calls for the end the Israeli “siege” on the Gaza Strip and compares Israel’s policy to apartheid (http://www.gazavive.com; the website was shut down on September 12, 2010).

InfoPal

The InfoPal masthead

35. Established in 2006, this organization disseminates “information” about the Palestinian issue.

Greece

ΕΛΛΗΝΟΠΑΛΑΙΣΤΙΝΙΑΚΗ ΦΙΛΙΑ

The organization's logo

36. Hellenic-Palestinian Friendship appears to be a small organization with its own blog which contains information about its activities and political views. The blog calls on readers to take part in the next flotillas and has stories about the previous ones in which the organization’s members took part. In January 2010, a representative of the organization met with Ismail Haniya (http://elladapalestini.blogspot.com/2010/01/gaza-16012010-this-keeps-for-legally.html).

A representative of Hellenic-Palestinian Friendship meeting with Ismail Haniya (January 16, 2010, the organization's website)

Poland

Palestinian Cultural Organization

37. This may refer to an organization called Palestinian Social and Cultural Committee in Poland, which arranged a visit to Poland for 70 children from Gaza in February 2009 (Ma’an News Agency, February 7, 2009).

Spain

Spanish Charity for Palestine

38. We have no information regarding this organization.

Umbrella organizations which collaborate with the ECESG

39. In addition to the ECESG coalition members, there are two umbrella organizations in Switzerland and Britain which collaborate with it. They are:

Urgence Palestine

The coalition's masthead

40. Urgence Palestine is a Swiss coalition of about 15 organizations that support the Palestinian cause. Based in Geneva, the coalition describes itself as an independent body whose objective is to support the Palestinian struggle and bring about the end of the “Israeli occupation.” The Swiss organization Association Droit pour Tous, which participates in the ECESG’s campaign, belongs to the coalition.

The organization's website features a Swiss ship sent to Gaza. The photograph shows the ship Sfendoni 8000, the ECESG ship which participated in the last flotilla.

The Muslim Council of Britain

41. The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) is a volunteer-run umbrella organization established in 1997 which coordinates Islamic organizations in Britain. According to its website, it is Britain’s largest Muslim umbrella organization, consisting of over 500 national, regional and local organizations. Its objective is to provide leadership and guidance to Muslims living in Britain, to promote cooperation between them, and to encourage and strengthen the efforts made on behalf of the Muslim community.

42. MCB is based in London and has ties to Interpal (www.mcb.org.uk). Since 2006, the secretary general of MCB has been Dr. Muhammad Abdul Bari (born in Bangladesh), a researcher in physics. He is also the chairman of the East London Mosque, one of the largest in Britain. The deputy secretary general is Dr. Daud Abdallah, who was born in Grenada in 1955 and relocated to Britain in the mid-1990s. Since 1996, he has been a senior researcher at the London-based Palestinian Return Centre (PRC) and editor of its periodical.

MCB director general Dr. Muhammad Abdul Bari (MCB website)

Appendix IV

“VIPs” who support the ECESG

1. In addition to the organizations and umbrella organizations that are part of the ECESG, the ECESG website mentions over 40 individually-listed activists (“VIPs”). While they do not represent any organization, they do support the ECESG’s objectives and activities. Most of the activists who appear on the list (16) are British, another indication of the scope of anti-Israeli and pro-Hamas activity in Great Britain. In addition, there are four activists from Italy, three from Brazil, two from Greece, and one each from Switzerland, Estonia, Greece, Denmark, and Portugal.

The list of supporters as it appeared on the organization's website

2. Other information that can be learned from the list:

A. Many activists are British, Irish, Welsh or Scottish MPs and politicians working for the Palestinian cause. Some of them belonged (or still belong) to the Labour Party.

B. Some of them are members of green parties or environmental activists.

C. Some of the activists are not directly involved with the Palestinian issue and do not regularly take part in pro-Palestinian activities.

Findings of a preliminary examination of the pro-EGESG activists

3. Lord Nazir Ahmed of Rotherham, born 1958, from Pakistan, married and father of three. One of the two Muslim members of the British House of Lords (to which he was appointed in 1998) and the first Muslim life peer. His political activity is mostly involved with the Muslim community in the UK and elsewhere, and he has often attracted controversy. Was a member of the Labour party, from which he was expelled in February 2009 after being sentenced for dangerous driving. He criticized the American-British attack on Afghanistan following the September 11 attacks; most of his activity, however, has been focused on easing tensions between Islam and the West.

Lord Nazir Ahmed (YouTube, December 14, 2009)

4. Baroness Jenny Tonge (known as “Jihad Jenny” in British press), born 1941, physician. Member of the House of Lords and the Baroness of Kew in the greater London area, formerly a Liberal Democrat Parliament Member. She supports the Palestinians and is a strong critic of Israel’s policies. In 2004 she expressed support for suicide bombers by saying: “If I had to live in that situation—and I say that advisedly—I might just consider becoming one myself.” Took part in a 2008 flotilla to the Gaza Strip. In 2010, she suggested that an independent inquiry should be established to investigate allegations of organ harvesting by Israeli medical teams after the 2010 Haiti earthquake, lending credence to the anti-Semitic canard. She was criticized for her remarks (http://en.wikipedia.org, http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk).

Jenny Tonge (Picture from Wikipedia)

5. Dr. Brian Iddon, born 1940, holds a PhD in chemistry. Labour party Parliament Member from 1997 to 2006. Was secretary of the British-Palestinian Parliament group (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Iddon).

Brian Iddon (Picture from Wikipedia)

6. Roger Godsiff, born 1946, formerly a bank teller, Labour party Parliament member. Was accused of obtaining selection for his seat in 1992 by dubious means, and was reported as having the highest office expenses in the 2009 parliamentary expense scandal. Opposed the war in Iraq and is active “for Gaza” in the parliament. Headed a delegation of British MPs who visited Syria in April 2009 and met with Khaled Mashaal to listen “to the official views of Hamas on the current situation in Gaza and the West Bank” (www.hearfromyourmp.com, May 8, 2009; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Godsiff).

Left: Roger Godsiff at a meeting with Khaled Mashaal in May 2009 (www.epolitix.com). Right: Roger Godsiff with Syria's President Bashar Assad in 2009 (http://www.epolitix.com/mpwebsites/mpwebsitepage/mpsite/rogergodsiff/ mppage/home-97).

7. Sandra White, born 1951, Labour party member of the Scottish parliament (MSP) representing Glasgow. Member of the Cross-Party Group on Palestine in the Scottish parliament, the Cross-Party Group on Asylum Seekers and Refugees, and other parliament groups. Visited the Gaza Strip in November 2008 on a fact-finding tour sponsored by the ECESG. In March 2009 she visited Syria with a delegation of parliament members funded by the ECESG and met with President Assad.

Sandra White condemns Israel's activity against the flotilla to Gaza (YouTube, May 2010)

8. Hugh O’Donnell, born 1952, has a media degree. MSP for Central Scotland, member of the Cross-Party Group on Palestine. Close associate of George Galloway. Visited the Gaza Strip in November 2008 on a fact-finding tour funded by the ECESG.

Hugh O'Donnell (scottish.parliament.uk)

9. Robin Harper, born 1940. MSP for the Lothians and member of the Green Party. Also member of the Cross-Party Group on Palestine.

Robin Harper (Picture from Wikipedia)

10. Bashir Ahmad, born 1940, India, died 2009. Came to Scotland in 1961 at the age of 21. Was elected to the Scottish Parliament to represent the Glasgow region, the first MSP to be elected from an Asian background. He was intensely active for the Palestinian cause and worked to provide seriously injured Palestinian children with medical care in Scotland’s hospitals.

11. Pauline McNeill, born 1962, Labour party MSP for Glasgow Kelvin. Convener of the Cross-Party Group on Palestine, was a UN observer at the 2006 PA elections. She may have been a member of the 2008 parliament delegation to the Gaza Strip on behalf of the ECESG.

Pauline McNeill condemning Israel's takeover of the Mavi Marmara (YouTube, May 2010)

12. Nerys Evans, born 1980, from Wales. Member of the National Assembly of Wales representing the Plaid Cymru party. She is also the spokeswoman for the party.

Nerys Evans (http://www.nerysevans.org/photo-gallery?nggpage=2)

13. Chris Andrews, born 1964, Irish politician. Comes from a family of politicians belonging to Ireland’s Fiana Fáil Republican Party. Was elected a TD (member of the lower house). He took part in the 2008 parliament delegation to the Gaza Strip that met with Ismail Haniya (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Andrews_(politician)). During Operation Cast Lead he called for an economic, diplomatic and political boycott of Israel and for the expulsion of its ambassador to Ireland. He said that Israel had the right to defend itself, but that its disproportionate response meant that .”..it can only now be classified as a terror state” (The Irish Times, January 14, 2009). In May 2010 he was prevented from leaving Cyprus by the authorities to join the flotilla to the Gaza Strip (www.intifada-palestine.com, May 22, 2010).

Left: The 2008 parliament delegation to Gaza at a meeting with Ismail Haniya (http://www.chrisandrews.ie/content.php4?area=146&item=829, September 13, 2010). Right: Chris Andrews (www.oireachtas.ie).

14. Olivia Mitchell, born 1947, Irish Parliament Member (TD) for Fine Gael, the second largest party in the Parliament. Took part in a parliament delegation to the Gaza Strip on behalf of ECESG. Unconfirmed reports suggest that she and Parliament Member Chris Andrews (See above) are members of an unofficial group of Irish MPs called Friends of Palestine (http://markhumphrys.com/irish.left.israel.html, http://www.oliviamitchell.finegael.ie).

Olivia Mitchell - http://www.oliviamitchell.finegael.ie

15. Darragh O’Brien, born 1974, first elected in the 2007 general election. Fianna Fáil TD for Dublin North since 2007. Senior member of the lower house committee on foreign affairs. Expressed blatant anti-Israeli views in his parliament activity. In January 2009 he was one of the parliament members who signed a petition published in The Irish Times calling for a boycott of Israel. The petition portrays the establishment of the State of Israel as a theft of Palestinian land (http://www.indymedia.ie/article/90913).

Darragh O'Brien (www.darraghobrien.ie)

Delegitimization of Israel, aka “Justice for Palestine”

The petition signed by O'Brien (http://debates.oireachtas.ie/DDebate.aspx?F=FOJ20080131.xml&Ex=All&Page=4)

16. Michael D. Higgins, born 1941, Ireland, Irish Labour Party president and spokesperson for foreign affairs. Former minister of arts and culture.

Michael D. Higgins (Picture from Wikipedia)

17. Fernando Rossi, born 1946, politician from Italy. Former member of the Italian Communist Party, from which he was expelled due to his opposition to the party line. Currently a labor union activist, recently founded his own party. Visited the Gaza Strip in 2008 and 2009. Took part in the last flotilla to the Gaza Strip.

Fernando Rossi on a visit to the Gaza Strip (irish4palestine.blogspot.com)

18. Stefano Montanari, born 1949, from Bologna, Italy, pharmacist and drug researcher. Has published studies and books, and holds patents in pharmaceutical field.

Stefano Montanari (Picture from Wikipedia)

19. Dr. Antonietta Gatti, Stefano Montanari’s wife, from Italy. Physician, member of the Italian Defense Ministry’s CPCM.

Antonietta Gatti (www.electroiq.com)

20. Sofia Sakorafa, born 1957, Greece, former champion javelin thrower. Physical education teacher and political activist for world peace, women’s rights and Palestinian rights. Was a member of the municipal council of Athens. Became a Palestinian citizen in 2004 and took part in the Athens Olympics as a Palestinian athlete.

Sofia Sakorafa with Yasser Arafat (wiki.phantis.com)

21. Michael Timosidis, from Greece.

22. Josef Zisyadis, born 1956, Istanbul. Currently resides in Switzerland. Member of the Swiss National Council for the Swiss Party of Labour. Member of the FGM. Took part in the last flotilla to the Gaza Strip with a group of European MPs. He issued a threat to go to the European court if Israel did not allow the flotilla to enter the Gaza Strip.

Josef Zisyadis (Picture from Wikipedia)

23. Katrin Saks, born 1956, from Tallinn, Estonia. Vice-Chairman of the Social Democratic Party, Estonia. Elected to the European Parliament in 2006. She lost her seat in 2009.

Katrin Saks (www.eorupal.ee)

24. Margrete Auken, born 1945, Denmark. Was a member of the Danish parliament. European Parliament representative for the Green Party. Vice-chair of a delegation for relations with the Palestinian Legislative Council. Active on environmental issues.

Margrete Auken (www.europarl.eu)

25. Ilda Figueiredo, born 1948, Portugal. Member of the European Parliament for the Portuguese Communist Party and of the Confederal Group of the European United Left.

Ilda Figueiredo (www.europarl.europa.eu)

26. Baroness Anne Gibson, born 1940. British trade unionist and Labour Party member. Signed various petitions for the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Baroness Anne Gibson (www.parliament.uk)

27. Lord Richard Harries of Pentregarth, born 1936, Britain. Retired bishop of the Church of England known for his liberal views.

Lord Richard Harries (Picture from Wikipedia)

28. Luisa Morgantini, born 1940, Italian member of the European Parliament. Elected as independent member of the Communist Refoundation Party. Leading member of the Italian peace movement and one of the founders of Women in Black. In June 2008 she was injured during a demonstration in Bil’in (news.bbc.co.uk, June 6, 2008).

Luisa Morgantini (Picture from Wikipedia)

29. Nilson Mourão, born 1952, Brazil, university lecturer. Member of the Communist Party of the Catholic church. Congress member since 1988. In 2010 he said he would not run for congress again.

Nilson Mourão (Picture from Wikipedia)

30. Jamil Murad, physician, works at a government hospital. Since 1978 he has been a public activist for workers’ rights and public medicine for the Communist Party of Brazil (PCdoB). Represented Communist Party at Yasser Arafat’s funeral.

Jamil Murad (www.jamilmurad.com.br)

31. Raul Carrion, born 1946. Political activist since the age of 17, when he joined Popular Action, a Catholic left-wing movement which called for a socialist revolution and national liberation, and had considerable influence mainly among students. Communist Party representative in Rio Grande, Brazil and globalization activist. He hosted the ECESG delegation that visited Brazil on August 20, 2010.

Raul Carrion (www.raulcarrion.com.br)

Note:

[1] Radical Muslim ideology was apparent among individuals and organizations aboard the Mavi Marmara, where the Muslim Brotherhood was well represented. For further information see the October 5, 2010 bulletin, “Conspicuous among the passengers and organizations aboard the Mavi Marmara were Turkish and Arab Islamic extremists led by IHH…” at Terrorism-info.org.il.

[2] News.nana10.co.il, (Hebrew).

[3] ECESG activists also met with Ashton’s predecessor, Javier Solana, regarding the same issue (ECESG website, July 9, 2010). The significance of their demand for the opening of the land and sea lanes into the Gaza Strip is the facilitation of smuggling weapons and infiltrating terrorist operatives. ECESG and other such pro-Hamas organizations completely ignore the terrorist threat posed by Hamas from the Gaza Strip and the security exigencies faced by Israel in dealing with the threat from the Gaza Strip.

[4] Intifada-palestine.com.

[5] hurryupharry.org.

[6] For further information see the date bulletin, “Viva Palestina, an organization headed by George Galloway, announced that a large, mostly overland aid convoy would leave London for the Gaza Strip via Europe on September 18.”

[7] ustreas.gov.