What we’re proud of this year – and preparing for next year

By Ben Murane, Executive Director

Across Israel today, there is a great struggle over which path the country should take in the aftermath of the horrifying Hamas attack of October 7th and the ongoing war. There are two powerful narrative visions at work.

One of these is embodied by Israel’s minister for national security, the far-right Jewish supremacist Itamar Ben-Gvir, and his allies. It is a vision of Jewish domination over Palestinians, and eternal religious war, one where both “sides” try to expel the other.

The other is a vision of Palestinians and Israelis forging a shared, secure future together as equals. This was the vision of Vivian Silver, a revered peace activist who was one of the Israelis killed on Oct. 7. It is the vision of a small but growing peace camp in Israel — and it remains the best, and perhaps only, hope for Israel’s future as a democratic state.

Since the start of this year, the New Israel Fund network around the world has fueled those Israelis fighting for a better future. And looking into 2025, we know Israelis are depending on us even more.

These are just a few of the Canadian-funded accomplishments of our Israeli partners this year:

• Our flagship partner – the Association for Civil Rights in Israel – defended democracy for thousands of Israelis by responding to 215 calls to their public hotline per month and by litigating dozens of cases for teachers’ rights, emergency health fees, freedom of expression, and police conduct.
• Bimkom: Planners for Planning Rights and Adalah, the leading legal centre for Israel’s Palestinian citizens, together won air raid shelters for Bedouin schools in the Negev after years of unsuccessful petitions to protect all citizens from Hamas’ rocket fire.
• NIF’s Civil Society Protection Hub provided aid to over 40 organizations and activists from extremist harassment, including legal counsel, security assistance, and malware diagnostics. They also took legal action against media outlets inciting violence, such as Channel 14 for promoting genocide and defending the defamation of released hostage Qaid Farhan Al-Qadi. The Hub also reversed the suspension of a 12-year-old student in Be’er Sheva accused of incitement.
• Think tank Mitvim developed a three-phase plan for post-conflict peace, focusing on transitioning from warfare to rehabilitation, paving the way for a stable settlement, and fostering regional normalization through a two-state solution, as well as policy proposals on issues like Palestinian elections, reconstruction of Gaza, and multinational peace efforts.
• The Israel Religious Action Center for the Reform Movement educated Israelis about urgent religious freedom issues by launching a new podcast, training Reform communities about municipal policies on religion-state, and hosting panels across the country and even at the Knesset.
• FakeReporter responded to 2,500 public inquiries and conducted 50 studies on foreign influence, hate speech, and online violence against civil society activists. They uncovered smear campaigns against hostage families and launched Arabic-language channels to become the first in the Middle East to combat disinformation in both Hebrew and Arabic.
• The Human Rights Defenders Fund provided legal aid to dozens of human rights defenders in Israel and the West Bank and Yesh Din monitored hundreds of cases of settler violence that led to convictions and compensation to victims.
• Shatil’s Tzameret-Kama program completed its year-long leadership course for 21 Jewish and Palestinian women in nonprofit middle-management and held its closing ceremony at the Canadian embassy in Tel Aviv with outgoing Ambassador Lisa Stadelbauer.
• Through the World Central Kitchen, which fed displaced Israelis after October 7th, we took the important moral stance of funding food aid to Gazans as part of $1.5 million raised by NIF around the world.

We’re proud of these achievements and we owe thanks to the thousands of Canadians like you who generously support the New Israel Fund of Canada.

The coming years will be difficult for Israelis. The already-extreme Netanyahu governing coalition is feeling emboldened by Donald Trump’s return to the White House. These times are why the New Israel Fund of Canada was created – to be a lifeline for those Israelis fighting for democracy, equality, and peace.

So we’re going to do just that: We are supporting think tanks that are formulating policies that will lead to gradual peace with the Palestinians. We are working to block annexation of the West Bank and the expulsion of Palestinian communities from their land. And we are mobilizing large-scale public campaigns to persuade Israelis that peace is not only possible, but vital to the country’s future.

At the same time, we continue supporting organizations and activists who are strengthening Jewish-Arab partnership, safeguarding civil rights including freedom of speech and freedom of protest for everyone in Israel, and working to achieve equality for all the country’s inhabitants. These are fundamental to Israeli democracy and are the underpinnings of our vision for the future.

In times when the situation feels hopeless, hope comes from those on the ground who refuse to give up. Not on the work in front of them, nor on the promise of a better future. Their daily examples of dogged pursuit of democracy, equality, and peace enable us to remain steadfast: we are their lifeline and we’ll fund, support, and join them every day.