Live After Quit

sounds alarm “Soros Sparks Stir: Foundation Financing Pro-Palestine Protests Raises Alarms

George Soros’ Open Society Foundations has provided funding to a nonprofit organization that finances and promotes pro-Palestinian protests, according to an investigation conducted by a watchdog group. The group, known as the Palestine Advocacy Project, provides funds to local activist groups, rallies, and other events that opposed U.S. aid to Israel, back a one-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and demand the release of Palestinian prisoners. It also funds advertising campaigns, workshops and conferences featuring pro-Palestinian activists and speakers. The investigation, conducted by the Middle East Forum’s Legal Project, a pro-Israel watchdog group, revealed that the Open Society Foundations provided financial support to the Palestine Advocacy Project through various donations totaling $294,000 between 2015 and 2017. George Soros, a Hungarian-American billionaire and philanthropist, is a major donor and advocate for pro-refugee and pro-immigrant causes around the world. In the past, he has been a major donor to progressive causes, such as Black Lives Matter and the Democratic party campaigns in the United States. In a statement, the Open Society Foundations — which describes its mission as one “dedicated to building vibrant and tolerant democracies whose governments are accountable to their citizens” — defended its decision to donate the funds. “Human rights efforts in the Middle East, including those of the Palestine Advocacy Project, are consistent with Open Society’s mission to promote democracy and human rights,” the statement said. The Legal Project, however, criticized the Open Society Foundations’ support of the Palestine Advocacy Project, claiming that “by providing this funding, the Open Society Foundations is aiding and abetting bad actors in exploiting human rights.” The Middle East Forum is a think tank that claims to “promote American interests in the Middle East and protect Western values from Middle Eastern threats.” Its Chairman, Daniel Pipes, has been a vocal critic of the Open Society Foundations and George Soros in the past. Opinions aside, this investigation by the Legal Project further highlights how George Soros uses his wealth to promote causes he believes in. In this case, it is the advancement of human rights in the Middle East. Funding provided by the Open Society Foundations to the Palestine Advocacy Project is just one step in the billionaire’s long history of financially supporting progressive causes across the globe.