After an anti-war protest in Tel Aviv several weeks ago, a protester was arrested. Why? He had stepped in to protect another protester when an ultra-nationalist agitator targeted her.
The NIF network and its partners were immediately on the scene:
- NIFC partner The Civil Society Protection Hub’s A-limut Israel initiative, alongside the Protest Detainee Legal Support Front, moved quickly to defend him, securing his release and preparing legal action to hold those responsible accountable.
- NIF grantee The Protest Detainee Legal Support Front also provided legal aid to two activists who were detained during an anti-war demonstration in Jerusalem just this past Saturday, securing the detainees’ release within a few hours.
Every person should have the right to express political opposition openly without fear of repression. But, too often, the ability to freely express dissent is one of the first casualties of war.
In Israel, Netanyahu’s coalition of extremists has consistently maligned those who oppose its wars as traitors. They have worked to control the narrative playing out in the media to discredit activists who point out Netanyahu’s lies and self-serving agenda.
But at NIFC, we are standing up and insisting on the principle of free speech, even when it is inconvenient.
NIFC partner Adalah, for example, protects basic civil liberties under threat during wartime. When a Palestinian citizen of Israel from the city of Harish was arrested simply for displaying a Palestinian flag in her private home, Adalah provided legal aid that led to her release. These are not isolated interventions—they are part of a broader effort to push back against a climate where expression is policed and dissent is treated as a crime.
In the shadow of war, NIFC and our partners are on the front lines, defending the rights of those who speak out, protecting the space for dissent, and ensuring that fear does not become the language of public life. Because even now, in some of the most fraught and volatile moments, civil society is not retreating—it’s rising. NIF and its grantees are proving, day after day, that another reality is still possible—one rooted in justice, equality, and the courage to stand up when it matters most.