The Israel lobby: A List

The Israel lobby: A List

Hollywood gala on November 2, 2017 to raise funds for “Friends of the IDF”, which supports Israeli soldiers. The event raised $54 million (See video below.) This is one of numerous groups around the U.S. that raise money for Israel, which is then deducted from their taxes.)

The pro-Israel special interest group is the most powerful interest group on behalf of a foreign country in the United States.

In fact, it may be the the most significant and pervasive special interest group in the country.

It consists of numerous institutions and individuals that work to influence Congress, the president, academia, the media, religious institutions, and American public opinion on behalf of Israel. It has been active in the U.S. for many decades.

These groups drive legislation to expend $20 million per day on behalf of Israel despite Israel’s violations of international law and U.S. law, and Israel’s long documented human rights abuses (see this).

The lobby works to propagandize people of all faiths, races, and political backgrounds. It tries to claim that those who disseminate facts they dislike are “antisemitic” – even the many Jewish and Israeli individuals and organizations who work for peace.

The lobby has caused great tragedy in the Middle East and harm to the U.S. While media and Israel partisans claim that Israel is an ally, this is untrue.

Below is a partial list, in no particular order, of groups and individuals that publicly support Israel.

Some of these are official lobbying groups whose primary purpose is to lobby governmental officials for pro-Israel policies. Others are groups or individuals that work to influence the media, academia and/or others in a pro-Israel direction. Some do this full-time; others as one portion of a diverse array of activities. While they span the political spectrum and range from hardcore supporters of the Israeli right to liberal critics of some Israeli policies, all support Israel.

(We will continue to update and add entities to this very incomplete list as staffing and time allow. We have been creating this roster for a number of years, so some links below may now be broken, and some information may need to be updated; we are working to fix these.)

Below this list are some recommended books and additional resources on the Israel lobby. (A longer list is here.)

• The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC): AIPAC is the most prominent governmental lobbying organization on behalf of Israel. Fortune Magazine typically rates it as the second most powerful lobby in the U.S. AIPAC frequently writes legislation for members of Congress, which extraordinarily large majorities of both parties typically endorse. It has a $100 million endowment and annual revenue of about $60 million and spends about $2-3 million each year in lobbying Congress. AIPAC’s annual conventions are typically a who’s who of high government office from both parties pledging their loyalty to Israel. Some years ago an AIPAC official announced that they planned to take over student governments.

Wolf Blitzer was a correspondent for AIPAC’S Near East Report in the 1970s. (Photo from 1985 talk on his book “Between Washington & Jerusalem.”

• Pro-Israel Political Action Committees (PACs): AIPAC does not give campaign contributions itself but instead uses a campaign finance network consisting of around thirty Pro-Israel Political Action Committees (PACs), which AIPAC is constantly signaling. Only four of these PACs have names that indicate their true agenda, such as ‘Allies for Israel’ or ‘World Alliance for Israel.’ The rest have innocuous names like ‘National Action Committee’ or ‘Heartland PAC.’ Constituents usually don’t realize their candidates are receiving money from PACs that advance the interests of a foreign government. (More info below)

• Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations (CoP): This group of 51 organizations also advocates on behalf of Israel, including a focus on Iran. It had revenues of over $2.2 million in 2011. All members of the CoP sit on AIPAC’s executive committee. The Conference of Presidents focuses on lobbying the Executive branch while AIPAC concentrates on Congress.

• The American Israel Education Foundation (AIEF): AIEF is a subsidiary of AIPAC that takes Congressional Representatives on all-expense-paid trips to Israel. In August 2011, 81 members of Congress from both parties took trips to Israel with the AIEF. Its annual budget is over $26 million, and its executive director, Richard Fishman, is officially “not compensated,” but he receives $395,000 annually from affiliates. Roll Call reports that in 2012 “The American Israel Education Foundation spent more than $650,000 last year — more than any other group — to send more than 60 lawmakers and staffers to Israel for tours of Jerusalem, seminars on Israeli politics and discussions of asymmetric warfare, according to congressional travel filings.”

• The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP): WINEP is a highly influential think tank that pushes Israel-centric Middle East policies. It was founded by a former AIPAC employee, and while it claims to promote a “balanced and realistic” understanding of the Middle East, it is “funded by individuals deeply committed to advancing Israel’s agenda.” It is frequently called upon by both the government and the media to provide “expert” analysis on Middle East issues. Its 2010 revenues were $9.4 million, and its net assets total $23.5 million. Former AIPAC member MJ Rosenberg stated: “I was working at AIPAC and it was Steve Rosen who cleverly came up with the idea for an AIPAC controlled think-tank that would put forth the AIPAC line but in a way that would disguise its connections.” More information is here.

• Anti-Defamation League (ADL): The ADL bills itself as a civil rights institution devoted to stamping out anti-Semitism. But in practice, it regularly works to promote Israeli interests and attacks virtually any prominent person who criticized Israel and labels them “anti-Semitic.” It has also been involved in a large spying operation against American citizens who opposed the policies of Israel and the Apartheid regime in South Africa. It is an architect of “hate crimes legislation” that may effectively criminalize criticism of Israeli policies. The ADL is a member of the CoP with revenues of around $68 million and as of 2008 had net assets of over $185 million. Abe Foxman, its former national director, made $688,280 per year. When he retired he took a position at an Israeli think tank. The current director is Jonathan Greenblatt.

Anti-Iran ad in NY Times
The icons below the photo are of the groups that paid for this anti-Iran advertisement. The full names of these groups are listed on the left.

• International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ – aka Stand for Israel): Founded in 1983 by Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein “to promote understanding between Jews and Christians and build broad support for Israel,” it promotes advocacy for Israel among mostly right-wing Christians. It has annual revenues of nearly $100 million. Ha’aretz reports: “since it was founded in 1983, the IFCJ (better known in Israel as Hakeren Leyedidut) has been pretty much a one-man show. And now that man is gone. Yechiel Eckstein, the charismatic rabbi who built this philanthropic empire from scratch, died suddenly of a heart attack on February 6 at age 67. Among the first to identify the potential for translating Christian evangelical support for Israel into charity dollars, he was the voice and face of the organization since its inception.

• Central Fund of Israel, based in Manhattan,  says it funds “over 250 charitable causes in Israel.” A Ha’aretz investigation found it funneled much of its money to settlements; it has sent money to an extremist Israeli organization in which the “rabbis heading the yeshiva published a book that discussed the circumstances in which non-Jews can be killed.” It has received “tens of millions of dollars” in donations. In 2015 its revenue was $20 million.

It also sponsors Reservists on Duty, established in 2015 by Israeli soldiers to travel to US college campuses to advocate for Israel and to train American Jewish students to speak on behalf of Israel.

The Gideon Project was created by Reservists On Duty “to give students fluent in English a chance to represent and defend Israel internationally after their service.” Soldiers speak on campuses throughout the U.S. Video here.

• NCSY: Originally named “National Conference of Synagogue Youth,” this is an Orthodox Jewish youth group under the auspices of the Orthodox Union that inculcates young people with pro-Israel propaganda and trains them to advocate for Israel. In 2019, for example, over 2,500 Jewish teens and staff from 29 states, Canada, Israel, Argentina and the United Kingdom participated in summer programs in Israel.

• Christians United for Israel (CUFI): CUFI is a right-wing Evangelical Christian organization run by David Brog, a Jewish American attorney who previously practiced corporate law in Tel Aviv, Israel. In 2007, the Forward newspaper listed Brog in its “Forward 50” most influential Jews in America. The titular founder of CUFI is John Hagee. CUFI, which distorts Biblical teachings, has high-level contacts with the Israeli government. It has a lobbying arm, called CUFI Action Fund, first reported in The Washington Post, run by Gary Bauer, one of the signers of the Statement of Principles of Project for the New American Century (PNAC) on June 3, 1997. Bauer also serves on the board of the Emergency Committee for Israel. In 2010 he received the Defender of Israel Award from the Zionist Organization of America. CUFI Action Fund’s Communications Director is Ari Morgenstern, an Israeli citizen who previously served at the Israeli Embassy in Washington. The fund, Bauer said, will have a multimillion-dollar budget and a dozen staffers who will focus on pro-Israel lobbying among members of Congress and presidential candidates. In 2017 it began a scorecard of legislators’ every vote and comment about Israel. Another funder is Bernard Marcus, founder and director of the Republican Jewish Coalition. Despite a budget of $7 million, it may be losing ground as more evangelicals learn the facts about Israel.

• Simon Wiesenthal Center: According to its website: The Simon Wiesenthal Center is a global Jewish organization that “stands with Israel.” It has “a constituency of over 400,000 households” in the US. It is headquartered in Los Angeles, with offices in New York, Toronto, Miami, Chicago, Paris, Buenos Aires, and Jerusalem.” It gave its “Humanitarian Award” to Harvey Weinstein in 2015 despite the open secret of Weinstein’s assaults on women. it has raised over a billion dollars, and in 2011 had an annual budget of $24 million and net assets of $67 million. More information here.

• The Israel Project: Founded in 2003, the Israel Project specializes in pro-Israel propaganda targeting the press and the American public. In 2009, a secret handbook commissioned by The Israel Project and written by Republican pollster and strategist Frank Luntz, “The Global Language Dictionary,” was exposed by two Newsweek reporters. The handbook crafts language and talking points for Israel advocates in simplistic, diversionary, and dishonest ways. The organization has 70 employees and an $11 million annual budget. In 2011 it opened additional bureaus in India and China and launched a website in Arabic.

• Friends of the Israeli Defense Forces (FIDF): This American organization supports the Israeli armed forces. It hosts lavish fundraisers and has fourteen regional offices in the U.S. and one in Latin America. FIDF also brings hundreds of Israeli soldiers to the U.S. every year to lecture at synagogues, universities, and schools in order to increase American support for Israeli policies. It has annual revenues of around $60 million and net assets of $80 million.

• Hadassah (Women’s Zionist Organization of America): Founded in 1912, Hadassah is “a volunteer organization that inspires a passion for and commitment to its partnership with the land and people of Israel.” It has chapters across the U.S. and “more than 330,000… Members, Associates and supporters.” It regularly advocates on behalf of Israel and is currently pushing anti-Iran legislation. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg was a lifelong member. It has annual revenues of nearly $100 million and $400 million in net assets.

• America’s Voices in Israel (AVI): A project of the Conference of Presidents, AVI works to “strengthen American understanding of and support for Israel by inviting U.S.-based radio talk show hosts to see Israel and broadcast their programs live from Jerusalem.” It also brings celebrities and other “opinion makers” on guided tours of Israel.

• PassagesPassages is a program that takes Christian college students to Israel to make them a “voice for Israel.” Students never visit the West Bank and Gaza. The program, which promotes Christian Zionism, was suggested by Israeli government officials. A major backer is hedge fund billionaire Paul Singer. It is a project of two nonprofit organizations: Museum of the Bible and the Philos Project.

• The Jewish Agency for Israel: The name is often shortened to just “The Jewish Agency.” According to its website, founded in 1929, this links “Jews around the world with Israel as the focal point… ” Major activities include Jewish Zionist education and building a global Jewish community. “In addition to extensive programs in Israel, it operates in close to 80 countries on five continents through a network of over 450 emissaries, including hundreds of formal and informal educators. The world Jewish community participates in the Jewish Agency’s decision-making process through the Assembly, its supreme governing body, and its Board of Governors, which is responsible for policy making and oversight.” The Jewish Federations of North American are a fundraising partner, with individual Jewish Federations from numerous American cities listed. (Below is a list of Jewish Federations that work for Israel.)

• Dennis Prager and PragerU:  Dennis Prager, a Jewish talk show host raised in Brooklyn who now lives in southern California, is a fanatic Israel advocate.  Despite calling itself “Prager University,” his PragerU is not a college or university. It is a $22 million nonprofit organization that produces 5-minute videos distributed nationally to “indoctrinate and motivate conservatives.” The CEO of PragerU served in the Israeli military’s notorious cyber espionage unit 8200. Prager, a thrice-married self-proclaimed conservative, has a net worth of $10 million.

• Young Judaea:  According to its website, the organization was founded in 1909 and is “the oldest Zionist youth movement in the United States.” It brings young people to Israel and also has numerous summer camps in the US that serve to “instill a lifelong love” of Israel. It’s annual budget is approximately $200,000.

• American Friends of Likud: According to its website, AFL “has developed unparalleled relationships with the Likud [a right-wing Israeli political party] Ministers and Members of Knesset as well as other Israeli dignitaries and policy and opinion makers. Our programs feature these individuals as guest speakers, lecturers and educators. Our special relationships with Israel’s leaders, dignitaries, journalists, etc. have been developed over the years and are based on a mutual belief in a right-leaning Likud philosophy.” Based in New York City, it is a has an annual budget of approximately $300,000. AFLis reported to be “one of hundreds of ‘Friends of’ Israel organizations in the US – all 501c3 tax-exempt charities raising funds to send to their parent organizations in Israel.”

• American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise (AICE) [Jewish Virtual Library]: This nonprofit organization was established in 1993, according to its website, in order to “strengthen the U.S.-Israel relationship.” Its principal publication is Myths & Facts: A Guide to the Arab-Israeli Conflict. It also works to fight “the delegitimization of Israel,” producing materials to oppose the BCS campaign and publishing the StopBDS.com website. There seem to be a number of AICE branches. The one in Chevy Chase assets of almost $11 million as of 2013. Its leader is Mitchell Bard. The organization sometimes funds professors on US campuses.

• The Israel Allies Foundation: Its website states: “Pioneered by MK Rabbi Binyamin Elon, the Israel Allies Foundation (IAF) works with Congress and parliaments around the world to mobilize political support for Israel based on Judeo-Christian values.” Officially titled International Israel Allies Caucus Foundation, it coordinates similar caucuses in 35 countries and has approximately $2 million in resources. 

• Americans United with Israel: The American branch of the international organization United with Israel, which states that it is “a global community comprised of individuals who are deeply committed to the success and prosperity of Israel. Our primary mission is to build a massive network of pro-Israel activists and to educate and promote unity with the People, Country and Land of Israel.” It is a tax-exempt organization. 2014 revenue was $590,000. It’s head is Kaylene Ladinsky, associate publisher of the Atlanta Jewish Times.

• The Jewish Policy Center: Its website says it provides timely perspectives and analysis of foreign and domestic policies by leading scholars, academics, and commentators” and “passionately supports … U.S.-Israel security cooperation, and missile defense. We support Israel in its quest for legitimacy and security.” The JPC also says: “We also support U.S. efforts to spread democracy in the Middle East. We believe it is critical to reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil. We support Washington’s efforts to deter dangerous states from acquiring nuclear weapons. Finally, we lend our full support to Israel in its long war for security in the Middle East.”

• Israel21c: A nonprofit organization founded in 2001 to promote Israel. According to the website, “The organization’s founders – Israeli-American technology executives – understood the great power of the Internet and developed a first-of-its kind online product with global appeal and reach.” It says: “Every week we reach millions of people through our website, social media channels, and e-newsletter.” Its president is Amy Friedkin and its annual budget is approximately half a million dollars. It states it is “spreading the word about Israel to millions of people in virtually every country around the globe.”

Students from across the US taking part in the second ISRAEL21c Ambassadors Retreat in Chicago. (photo)

• Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA): The Jewish Council for Public Affairs acts as an umbrella for many smaller organizations. One of its three goals, as announced in its mission statement, is to work for “the safety and security of the State of Israel.”  Its annual funding is $3,128,795 and comes primarily from private individuals. 

• Jewish National Fund (JNF): The Jewish National Fund is an international organization founded at Basil Switzerland by Theodore Herzl in 1901. The fund was originally created with for the purpose of purchasing land in Palestine for a future Jewish state. Today the main focus for the JNF is land “reclamation” and forestry. However, the group also serves to fund IDF military installations. The organization is well funded by donors with total assets of $1.15 billion dollars.

• Zionist Organization of America (ZOA): The Zionist Organization of America was established in 1887, making it the oldest pro-Israel organization in the US. Their goal is to spread the Zionist message wherever in all aspects of American life. Their objectives include spreading Zionism on American campuses, work to advance the interests Israel and Jewish people within the American legal system. They also engage in pro-Israel lobbying, with expenditures totaling $299,900 in 2009. Their finances include over $8 Million in assets and $2.5 million from donors.

• World Jewish Congress: The World Jewish Congress is an international organization representing Jews in 100 countries. Supporting Israel is one of the key components of its mission. Although its global finances are unknown, its US offices have an annual revenue of $5,521,674. It holds galas in which massive power is displayed, billionaire oligarchs, etc.

• The Haym Salomon Center: According to its website, The Haym Salomon Center is a news and public policy group that produces content that often appears in mainstream and new media outlets. Its articles have been published in USA Today, the New York Daily News, Fox News, The Hill, the Washington Times, the Wall Street Journal, etc. Many of its articles focus on Israel, the dangers of “political Islam,” and”antisemitism,” which frequently means opposition to Israeli human rights violations. It operates under Over the Horizon nonprofit organization, which in 2014 had approximately a quarter of a million dollars.

• The Foundation for Jewish Camp: This nonprofit foundation states on its website that in in Jewish camps “Israeli culture is celebrated through song, food, art, and dance,” and reports, “The magic of Jewish camp is rooted in its 24/7 atmosphere” and says that “connection to Israel” is “entwined with basketball, arts and crafts and swimming.” It notes that some camps are particularly “focused on Zionism and the role of Israel in Jewish life.” It reports that in one of these, CAMP INC., “Israel education will be embedded in the program as campers learn about Israel through the lens of their entrepreneurial sector. Campers will learn from high-level mentors, teachers, and business pioneers. Camp Inc., under the direction of Josh Pierce, will be operated by the Boulder JCC.” Another, URJ 6 POINTS SCIENCE ACADEMY “will immerse them in a vibrant Jewish community filled with Jewish music, Shabbat experiences, and living connections to Israel.” It states that the Academy, the 14th in the Union for Reform Judaism’s camp system, will be located in the Boston, MA area. Funding comes from a grant of $8.6 million jointly funded by The Jim Joseph Foundation and the AVI CHAI Foundation.

Photo from Foundation for Jewish Camp website.

• The Jim Joseph Foundation: This is a DBA of the Shimon Ben Joseph Foundation, which faqs.org reports has assets of $837,220,914. Its website reports that among the activities its sponsors is “Israel Education,” which includes “twinning day schools with schools in Israel; integrating Israel education with learning taking place in general studies courses; and showcasing Israel’s arts and culture so students and teachers are in direct contact with what is happening in Israel today.”

• The Avi Chai Foundation: According to its 2010 form 990 report it had total assets of $614,997,808. One of its primary North American focuses, according to its website, is “Promoting Jewish Peoplehood and Israel.” It states: “Israel studies and Israel advocacy have become centerpieces of AVI CHAI’s peoplehood efforts in North America. All of the day schools receiving support from AVI CHAI have agreed to include in their materials, as an expression of their own philosophy, the following statement: “The creation of the State of Israel is one of the seminal events in Jewish history. Recognizing the significance of the State and its national institutions, we seek to instill in our students an attachment to the State of Israel and its people as well as a sense of responsibility for their welfare.”

JTA reports: “The Avi Chai Foundation, one of the leading supporters of Jewish day schools, includes on its website a section on Israel Education and Advocacy. It requires all schools receiving its support to abide by a statement saying that they ‘seek to instill in our students an attachment to the State of Israel and its people as well as a sense of responsibility for their welfare.’ It provides books on defending against anti-Israel campaigning on college campuses.”

• Stand with Us: Stand with Us has headquarters in Los Angeles and chapters in Israel, Europe, Britain, Australia, and South Africa. Its annual budget is at least $4 million, though this may only cover the U.S. section. It has a number of divisions, including StandWithUsCampusStandWithUs InternationalUnited4FreedomStand4FactsLearnIsraelLibrarians for Fairness, and Emerson Fellows. Student leaders are trained to advocate for Israel on campuses around the country. The organization has erected numerous pro-Israel, anti-Palestinian billboards around the U.S. “Israelis invested $57 billion in U.S. Companies” is one of them. For a deconstruction of this billboard go here.

• Creative Community for Peace: This group lobbies artists to perform in Israel, claiming to be an entertainment industry organization advocating for artistic freedom and building bridges. It hides that it is a front group for Stand With Us (see above). Registration and tax documents show that StandWithUs and Creative Community for Peace are alternate names for a single IRS-registered non-profit, “Israel Emergency Alliance.” More information here.

• Israel on Campus Coalition: Its website states: “Our role in this effort is to unite the many pro-Israel organizations that operate on campuses across the United States by coordinating strategies, providing educational resources, sharing in-depth research, and increasing collaboration.” It is a tax exempt 501(c)3 organization. In 2018 it spent $9 million.

• Emergency Committee for Israel (ECI): The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reports:

Washington observers may feel there is no obvious shortage of pro-Israel lobbyists in the city—but a group of leading American conservatives thinks otherwise and has set up a new campaign group to attack President Obama over his ‘anti-Israel’ stance. The Emergency Committee for Israel presents a potent combination of Republican Party neoconservatives and Evangelical Christians. The new group’s board includes Weekly Standard Editor William Kristol and Gary Bauer, a former Republican presidential candidate who leads the group American Values, as well as Rachel Abrams, a conservative writer and activist.

Its website says: “The Committee for Israel is committed to mounting an active defense of the US-Israel relationship by educating the public about the positions of political candidates on this important issue, and by keeping the public informed of the latest developments in both countries. Join us to help support Israel and her many friends here in the United States.” The group makes his videos,  Its board is here.

The Committee produced an advertisement against Ron Paul that ran in South Carolina because of Paul’s opposition to U.S. aid to Israel and other countries, and another one against Rush Holt, who was defeated by Cory Booker, whose largest donor was a pro-Israel PAC. ECI funded tens of thousands of dollars worth of anti-Obama advertising.

• Leona M. and Harry B Helmsley Charitable Trust: The trust fund is valued at between $4 billion and $8 billion. Among the main areas its grants support are programs focused on “the security and development of Israel.” According to Jewish Week:

“[Leona Helmsley] left instructions for her charitable trust fund… to benefit dogs. But the courts ruled that the Leona and Harry Helmsley Trust Fund she had established after her husband’s death was not legally bound to fund animals only, and that its grants should be directed solely at the discretion of the trustees she had appointed. Fortunately for the State of Israel, Mrs. Helmsley chose Sandor (Sandy) Frankel, 69, a local Jewish attorney who worked closely with her the last 18 years of her life, to be one of the four trustees who now oversee that major trust. Frankel, who is married to an Israeli and has visited Israel frequently since he was a teenager, is proud to say that he has a passion for the Jewish state.

Among the projects receiving its multi-million grants was a new press center in Israel. At its opening Frankel announced: “Our hope is that with the opening of the club’s doors, the press will flock here, and will accurately report” on the country and its people.

• AMIT: According to its website: “Founded in 1925, AMIT is the world’s leading supporter of religious Zionist education and social services for Israel’s children and youth, nurturing and educating Israeli children to become productive, contributing members of society.” It has numerous chapters throughout the U.S. It sponsors lectures about Israel, holds screenings of Israeli films, participates in pro-Israel parades, etc. In 2011 its annual expenses were over $8 million and its net assets were $11,705,151. Its executive vice president was paid $120,292.

• Aaron and Marie Blackman Foundation, Inc: Net assets of about $7 million (see also here and here). Distributes grants to various Israeli organizations and other organizations with relationships with Israel. It announces: “The State of Israel has great importance in our grant making process.”

• Jewish Day Schools: Many of these schools work to “instill in our students an attachment to the state of Israel.” (they sometimes use this version: “we seek to instill in our students an attachment to the State of Israel and its people as well as a sense of responsibility for their welfare.” They frequently have school trips to Israel (e.g. the Jewish Day school in Seattle), and include it in curricula, e.g. in Sacramento: “sixth-graders pursue a curriculum centered on Israel.” Their mission statements note that they teach “the centrality of the State of Israel” (see Contra Costa Jewish Day School). These are usually tax exempt institutions, which means they are subsidized by U.S. taxpayers. JTA reports: “In April 2002, day schools throughout the country — Block Yeshiva High School in St. Louis, the Ramaz School in New York and the Ida Crown Jewish Academy in Chicago, to name a few — sent students by bus or plane to a pro-Israel rally in Washington, D.C.  “’They drove us to every single rally,” said Shira Galston, a 2004 graduate of Ramaz. “There was no question [of] do you want to go to the rally. We’re going to the rally. Whenever there was something that happened, there was never a question of what side the school was on.’” The Frisch school (Jared Kushner is an alum) hosts training sessions for a project in which teens carry out social media missions assigned from Israel. The Avi Chai Foundation, one of the leading supporters of Jewish day schools, includes on its website a section on Israel Education and Advocacy. It requires all schools receiving its support to abide by a statement saying that they “seek to instill in our students an attachment to the State of Israel and its people as well as a sense of responsibility for their welfare.” It provides books on defending against anti-Israel campaigning on college campuses. See this statement by Avi Chai. (It is important to note that such support for Israel came only after years of pro-Israel efforts to obtain this. The American Jewish population did not originally support Zionism, and there are many groups and individuals today who oppose this ideology, both in the U.S. and in Israel itself.)

Photo from Mirowitz Jewish Community School (Missouri) website photo gallery of “happenings.”

 • Fuel For Truth: This program trains people to advocate for Israel. A program of the ZOA, the organization runs “boot camps” that are “specifically designed for young professionals in their 20s and 30s” where they are trained in Israeli talking points. Each boot camp is “an intensive, multi-week program which equips participants with the facts, skills and confidence to stand up for Israel while providing a fun, social space to be part of a community and something bigger than yourself.” They’re held in New York City, Washington, DC, Miami, Boston and Chicago, and are planning to expand to Los Angeles in 2019. Its non-profit tax ID is 30-0129917 – it is a 501(c)(3) organization with an income in 2017 of $144,000.

• American Jewish Committee (AJC): The American Jewish Committee, founded in 1906, is based is San Francisco. In its mission statement, the AJC espouses support for leftist values, such as “shared democratic values” and “energy independence of the US,” while also advocating the right of Israel to exist as an exclusionary Jewish state. Its annual income is about $49,525,000 and comes largely from private individuals, with its assets totaling $132,310,000. It played a major role in creating the new Israel-centric definition of antisemitism that is being embedded around the world.

• Friends of Aish Hatorah:  Aish Hatora, Hebrew for “fire of the Torah,” is an Orthodox Jewish organization founded in 1974 and headquartered in Jerusalem. The group is known for a number of pro-Israel programs, including The Theodore Herzl Mission, which brings heads of state to Israel for one week each year. They also have a program called the Hasbara Fellowship, where people can come from around the world to learn how to effectively engage in pro-Israel propaganda. The group has also been linked to the distribution of an anti-Islamic propaganda film during the 2008 American presidential campaign. Because Aish Hatora is based in Jerusalem with various global branches, the details of their funding are unknown.

• Chabad: Chabad-Lubavitch, based on an 18th century Hasidic movement, is one of the the largest Jewish organizations in the world. It is a fervent supporter of Israel. One Chabad Rabbi has encouraged Jewish people to kill “Arab men, women, and children.” Chabad sometimes openly teaches that “the soul of the Jew is different than the soul of the non-Jew.” The group has a reported net worth of $1 billion dollars.

• Republican Jewish Coalition: The Republican Jewish Coalition Jewish is a lobbying group whose mission statement includes the “embrace of pro-Israel foreign policy.” The RJC maintains close links to the Likud party of Israel. They also control a Super Pac, which has upward of 2 million dollars in their war chest. Their Annual revenue is $10,067,507. The vast majority of their funding comes from various organizations.

• National Jewish Democratic Council: The National Jewish Democratic Council is a group dedicated to maximising Jewish support for the Democrat party, increasing support for “Jewish domestic and foreign policy priorities,” and “secur[ing] a democratic Jewish state in Israel.” NJDC supports Likud policies and pushes for a hawkish stance against Iran, urging the President of the United States to “stand with Israel.” Its annual income is $1,161,195 and is funded by private individuals.

• Foundation for Defense of Democracies: The Foundation for Defense of Democracies is an international organization whose claimed goal is “fighting terrorism and promoting freedom” and “defend[ing] free nations from their enemies.” It developed from the educational initiative Emet, which was created to “win American sympathy for Israel’s response to the Palestinian intifada.” While its mission may appear neutral, the organization is dedicated to promoting the security of Israel. Among its other projects is the Iran Project, which revolves around “supporting energy sanctions.” It is funded largely by private individuals’ donations. Its annual income is $7,267,839. It is sometimes used as a front for Israeli initiatives (see this).

• JINSA: JINSA is a non-profit organization whose mandate includes promoting a “a strong U.S. military, a robust national security policy, and a strong U.S. security relationship with Israel…” Their total revenue is $3,332,140 from contributions and program services. (see this)

John Hannah – Senior Fellow at JINSA, advisor at FDD, served as deputy director and senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

• Saban Center at Brookings: The Saban Center for Middle East Policy is part of the Brookings Institute. Its mission statement includes a two-state solution for Israel/ Palestine. “Ardent Zionist” Haim Saban, a former AIPAC official, funds the institute.

• Center for Security Policy: Founded and led by neoconservative Frank Gaffney, a longtime Israel partisan, CSP works to promote a close US-Israel relationship and to position Israel’s enemies as allegedly US adversaries. It’s annual budget is approximately $4 million and Gaffney himself earns over $288,000 yearly. The Institute for Policy Studies states: “…(CSP) is a prominent member of the neoconservative advocacy community that has promoted extravagant weapons programs, an Israel-centric view of Middle East peace, and a broad “war on terror” against ‘Islamofascists.’……A primary target of CSP’s work is Iran.”

• MEMRI: The Middle East Media Research Institute is an organization founded in the US in 1998. It’s stated objective is to “inform the debate over US foreign policy in the Middle East.” However, MEMRI is a shadowy organization that does not disclose names of staff members nor office locations. Analysts have commented that MEMRI appears to function as a propaganda organization that circulates biased translations in order to portray Arabs in the most negative possible light. One of the organization’s founders worked as an Israeli military intelligence officer. MEMRI has full non-profit status in the US and receives donations and grants amounting to $4,872,208 annually.

• Hillel: Hillel is a Jewish international student organization. According to its web page, Hillel “fosters an enduring commitment to Jewish life, learning and Israel.” Its president has stated: “We are a pro-Israel organization. It is part of our mission to encourage students to build an enduring commitment to Israel as a Jewish and democratic homeland.” Hillel sponsors and promotes free “birthright” trips to Israel. These trips position Israel as the “homeland” for European and American Jews. Hillel collects annual revenue of $25,920,017, primarily from gifts, grants, and contributions. Hillel has had a program to try to expand its reach by  “paying students to attract other students” to Hillel.

In 2014 some students launched an Open Hillel to challenge the Hillel establishment and work to allow campus groups “to adopt policies that are more open and inclusive than Hillel International’s, and that allow for free discourse on all subjects within the Hillel community” and that represent “a Jewish community where the full diversity of Jewish views on Israel-Palestine is accepted and celebrated.”

• Birthright Israel: Birthright Israel is an organization that provides free ten-day holidays to Israel for young Jewish adults, age 18 to 26. Their objective is to, “strengthen Jewish identities, Jewish community, and solidarity with Israel…” Their web page strongly emphasizes support for Israel. Philanthropists, along with 14,000 individual donors, fund Birthright Israel. Their total revenue is $101,960,863.

• David Project: The David Project is a non-profit educational program for the dissemination of pro-Israel propaganda in schools. Their primary goal is justification for Israeli actions, which is often referred to in the Hebrew term, “hasbara” (explaining). Their objective is, “work[ing] directly with students and Israel groups to help them reach out to their peers and talk about Israel.” The David Project has annual income of $2,824,763. However, the source of this income is unclear.

• Amcha Initiative: The Amcha Initiative is a group whose stated objective is to protect Jewish students from anti-Semitism. Their definition of anti-Semitism is broad and encompasses virtually any criticism of Israel, including criticism of Israel’s human rights abuses. The group also lists the Boycott Divest and Sanction movement as an example anti-Semitism. Their annual income is $199,155. The source of this income is unclear.

• Young Israel: The National Council of Young Israel is a group of  146 Orthodox Jewish congregations. Starting in 1912, Young Israel’s web page claims that the group has always been “fiercely Zionist” and even boasts the acquisition of arms for the Jewish terror group Haganah. Young Israel currently offers material support to the Israeli Defense Force as it engages in attacks on Palestinians in Gaza. Because Young Israel is an umbrella for over 100 individual non-profit organizations, it is difficult to ascertain the amount and sources of the group’s income.

• Ateret Cohanim: American Friends of Ateret Cohanim is a non-profit organization based in Jerusalem. The purpose of the organization is the urban renewal of Jerusalem through Jewish gentrification. Their web site boasts of a new Jewish presence in the Christian and Muslim quarters of the Old City, and proclaims Jerusalem to be a city belonging to every single Jew, in spite of the fact that Israel’s annexation of East Jerusalem is still not recognized under international law. The group maintains an office in New York with annual revenue of $1,054,618.

• Elad: The Ir David foundation (Amutat EL-AD) is a non-profit organization established in 1986 by David Be’eri, a former elite military commander of the IDF. According to their web page, the group “is dedicated to the preservation and development of the Biblical City of David and its environs.” However, the Ir David foundation is best known for its policy of “Judaization of east Jerusalem” through forced evictions and housing purchases. In recent years, their activity in East Jerusalem has been linked to violent clashes between Palestinians and the new Jewish residents. Ir David has a US auxiliary in New York called Friends of Ir David with total annual revenue of $5,884,950.

• BBYO (formerly B’nai B’rith Youth Organization)Its website says: “BBYO is the leading pluralistic teen movement aspiring to involve more Jewish teens in more meaningful Jewish experiences. For 90 years, BBYO has provided identity enrichment and leadership development experiences for hundreds of thousands of Jewish teens.” It prides itself on its “unwavering commitment to the State of Israel.” The site says: “BBYO’s history is closely tied to that of the State of Israel. As the future leaders of the global Jewish community, it is our responsibility to learn about, appreciate and advocate for Israel.” Its 2015 annual budget was $27 million.

• Israeli-American Council: According to the Jewish Daily Forward, the Israeli American Council (IAC) aims to establish the Israeli expatriate community living in the U.S. community “as a ‘strategic asset’ for Israel in the U.S.” The goal is to be a “a potent political force in the future.”  IAC was established in Los Angeles in 2007, but expanded dramatically in 2013 when  casino mogul Sheldon Adelson’s began to serve as its main funder. About 700 expatriate Israelis participated in the “first-ever national political conference exclusively devoted to the expat Israeli community” in Nov. 2014. It has an annual budget of $17.5 million.

According to a 2013 report, “Current IAC programs include: Tzav 8 (recruiting thousands for pro-Israel rallies); Financing the Israeli “Shlichim” at all major campuses in Southern California; Organizing and funding the Los Angeles Independence Day Festival – the largest Jewish festival in North America, as well as dozens of ceremonies, holidays and mass events for the community; Sifriyat Pijama B’America, through which 10,000 families nationwide enjoy Hebrew bedtime books sent to their kids by mail, free of charge on a monthly basis; IAC-BINA club, consisting of approximately 1,500 Israeli and American Jewish young adults who convene discussions and activities relating to Jewish identity and support for Israel; establishing and funding the IAC-Care project in which thousands of the community members volunteer and organize large scale drives; and Mishelanu (the leadership program for Israeli-Americans students). More information is available on its website.

• America-Israel Chamber of Commerce Chicago: An American 501(c)6 tax-exempt organization founded in 1958 that facilitates trade and investment between the US and Israel, promotes Israeli goods and services, trade delegations and business match-making events, and works closely with the Government of Israel to advance bilateral trade. It is a sponsor of the website BuyIsraelGoods.org. The organization, which is tax deductible in the U.S., urges people to buy goods from a foreign country.

This is just one of a dozen such tax-exempt America-Israel Chambers of Commerce in the U.S. listed by the The Association of America-Israel Chambers of Commerce.

 

Billionaires for Israel:

MICHAEL BLOOMBERG is a fervent Israel advocate. In 2014, as Mayor of New York, he flew to Israel to support Israel’s ruthless assault on Gaza that killed hundreds of children – & defied the FAA’s flight ban to do it. See this and this and this.

SHELDON AND MIRIAM ADELSON – Miriam is an Israeli citizen; husband Sheldon had said he wished he’d served in the Israeli military rather than the U.S. Army. He’s buried in Israel. One of the couple’s final political acts, before Sheldon Adelson’s death on January 11, 2021, was to fly Jonathan Pollard — a former U.S. Navy analyst who spent 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to spying for Israel — to Israel on one the family’s private 737s once Pollard’s travel ban was lifted. “Foreign policy has been the key-defining issue-area of the Adelsons’ political giving. The Adelsons helped to support the ultra-hawkish pro-Likud, anti-Iran echo chamber, including, among other groups, the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, the Israeli American Council, United Against Nuclear Iran, and the  Zionist Organization of America — all of which the couple financially supported over the last two decades. They also provided tens of millions of dollars to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee over the years…”

HAIM SABANA major activist donor to Democrats, who gave $1 million to a superpac and has said, “I’m a one-issue guy and my issue is Israel.” A secretive summit with Sheldon Adelson raised millions of dollars to oppose Palestinian rights advocacy… Also see this video.

LEN AND EMILY BLAVATNIK Len Blavatnik is an Israeli-Russian billionaire (his wife is American) who funds scholarships for Israeli military veterans; is a member of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s “billionaires club” (a list that also includes Sheldon Adelson, Charles Kushner, and Donald Trump); may be part of an alleged corruption scandal involving Netanyahu and Israeli Hollywood producer and Mossad asset Arnon Milchan. More

RONALD LAUDER is fervently pro-Israel. He is head of the World Jewish Congress and Chairman Emeritus of the Jewish National Fund, which advocate for Israel. More

SETH KLARMAN is a major funder of The Israel Project (TIP), a hawkish advocacy organization [now defunct]. A member of TIP’s board of directors, he gave the group nearly $4 million between 2008 and 2011. Klarman has funded other Israel advocacy groups, including the Washington Institute for Near East Policy (a spinoff of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee), the neocon Foundation for Defense of Democracies, the Middle East Media Research Institute, and Daniel Pipes’ Middle East Forum. Mondoweiss reports that Klarman has given over $1.5 million to CAMERA, the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America – an American, non-profit, pro-Israel media-monitoring organization. More

DAVID GEFFEN established the David Geffen Foundation – one of its five major areas of giving is “issues of concern to the Jewish community” – such as a grant to “Friends of the Israel Defense Forces” (for information see this), and Israel advocacy organizations such as the American Jewish Committee and Jewish Federation Council. More

JENNIFER PRITZKER (FORMERLY JAMES PRITZKER) notes that one of the most memorable experiences was “personally witnessing the Yom Kippur War as a civilian at Kibbutz Kfar Blum in Israel, October 1973, where Pritzker spent a year after high school.” The Pritzker family is one of the wealthiest families in the U.S. It is known for being pro-Israel. The Chicago Tribune reported in 1985: “The Pritzker family buys $500,000 worth of Israel bonds each year and, besides their other philanthropies, also makes donations to universities and institutions in Israel. Among Pritzker’s cousins are two prominent Democratic political figures: Penny Pritzker, Secretary of Commerce in President Barack Obama’s administration; and her brother, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker (D). Penny Pritzer was instrumental in the rise of Barack Obama. (Cousin Thomas Pritzker, also a billionaire, was also friends with Epstein and flew on his plane together.) More

WILLIAM ACKMAN AND NERI OXMAN founded the Pershing Square Foundation – which in 2018 gave more grants to Israel than to any other country outside the US, and has given grants to the Birthright Israel Foundation and The Israel Project. Neri Oxman is an Israeli citizen who enlisted in the Israeli military. More

MARC AND CATHY LASRY  “He has been to Israel many times both for business reasons and because he is “involved in a number of charities” there, though he would not say which because ‘we’re doing it kind of anonymously.’” His son Alex worked for AIPAC, and his son-in-law is an Israeli from a family that funds extremist groups in Israel. More

 ERIC SCHMIDT former chairman of tech giants Google and Alphabet, had nothing but praise for Israel when he visited in 2012: “There are no disadvantages to investing in Israel – just advantages. Israel has the most important high-tech center in the world after the US.” Algemeiner pointed out that “Glowing reviews and endorsements…from leaders such as Schmidt go a long way in inspiring global investor confidence in Israeli markets.” More

BARRY DILLER The Jewish Standard has reported that the website of his family foundation (with wife Diane Von Furstenberg) listed a “number of Jewish organizations among its grantees [most of which are openly pro-Israel]: Temple Sholom in New Milford, Conn., The Henry Street Settlement on the Lower East Side of New York, American Friends of the College of Judea, the Anti-Defamation League, and the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum” More

AMY GOLDMAN FOWLER  Fowler led a Jewish philanthropists roundtable in 2012 that stated among its goals “support for Israel.” A Goldman family foundation gave $500,000 to “Friends of the Israeli Defense Forces.” Israel Defense Forces (IDF) More

Tisch family:

Billionaires – Steven, Jonathan, and Laurie Tisch are siblings. Their cousin, James Tisch, was elected chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel in 2011, and is currently an honorary member. More

JONATHAN TISCH   is a co-owner of the New York Giants and co-chair of Loews Corporation. In 2016, he donated $15 million to Tufts University – for the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life. The college sponsors student trips to Israel, high profile pro-Israel speakers as part of the Tisch College Distinguished Speaker Series, e.g.: “Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro spoke at Tufts University as part of the Tisch College Distinguished Speaker Series” and “The Israel-Jordan Peace Treaty at 25: A Conversation with Ambassador Dennis Ross.”

LAURIE TISCH is the daughter of Loews co-founder Preston Robert Tisch. She has an honorary doctorate from Yeshiva University (whose campuses are in both the US and Israel). Her foundation, The Illumination Fund, supports projects in the U.S. and in Israel. One of its projects, the Laurie M. Tisch Gallery, has featured numerous exhibits from and about Israel (examples hereherehere, and here).

STEVEN TISCH gave a $10 million donation to create “The Steve Tisch School of Film and Television” at Tel Aviv University in Israel, which will “help further cement Israel’s growing reputation as ‘Hollywood on the Mediterranean.’” In 2014 he gave $2 million to Friends of the IDF. (for information on Friends of the IDF see this.) (As co-owner of the New York Football Giants, Tisch has won two Super Bowl rings; as producer of Forrest Gump, he won the Oscar for Best Picture in 1994, and has received two Super Bowl rings as Chairman of the Giants.)

STEVEN ROTH  Inside Philanthropy reports that the Roths’ foundation supports: “Jewish Causes: Grantees include UJA Federation, Anti-Defamation League, Jewish Center of the Hamptons, and Chabad Center for Jewish Discovery.” All advocate for Israel. (Information about Chabad is here.) Steven Roth is a trustee of The Jewish Seminary of America, a strongly pro-Israel institution. More

MIMI HAAS – Haas is the widow of Peter E. Haas, great-grandnephew of Levi Strauss, founder of Levi Strauss & Co. In July 2004, Haas became a director of Levi Strauss & Co. She has been president of the Miriam and Peter Haas Fund since August 1981. The fund, with assets of more than $200 million, supports many Jewish causes in Israel and the United States. She was previously married to Rabbi Brian Lurie, whom she had met in Israel when on an American Friends of the Hebrew University program. Her son is president of the progressive, pro-Israel New Israel Fund, whose motto is “Taking a stand for a better Israel.” More

PAUL SINGER  is the founder and CEO of the hedge fund Elliott Management Corporation and an important backer of rightwing “pro-Israel” advocacy in the United States. “Singer is deeply involved in a network of right-wing, “pro-Israel” organizations. He serves on the boards of Commentary magazine,[2]the Republican Jewish Coalition,[3]and the Manhattan Institute, where he chairs the board of trustees.[4]He is a former board member of the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs,[5]has funded neoconservative research groups like the Middle East Media Research Instituteand the Center for Security Policy, and—along with Home Depot founder Bernard Marcusand casino magnate Sheldon Adelson—is among the largest funders of the neoconservative Foundation for Defense of Democracies.[6]He was also connected to the pro-Iraq War advocacy group Freedom’s Watch.[7]” A major  backer of “Passages” – a program that takes Christian college students to Israel to make them a “voice for Israel.” Students never visit the West Bank and Gaza. The program, which promotes Christian Zionism, was suggested by Israeli government officials.

NORMAN BRAMAN donated to Ariel, an Israeli West Bank settlement. Supports Birthright trips to Israel… Also see this and this

MICHAEL STEINHARDT  is a “mega-philanthropist” best known as the founder of Birthright Israel, a free, ten-day trip to Israel that is enjoyed by a large percentage of Jewish young adults. He also facilitates programming after the Birthright experience in order to maintain participants’ loyalty to Israel and Jewish culture… “He has a history of donating to cultural institutions such as the Israel Museum and another that bears his name — the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History in Tel Aviv…”

[more to come]

The book Big Israel: How Israel’s Lobby Moves America  by Grant F. Smith provides detailed information on “Israel Affinity Organizations: – nonprofit organizations in the U.S. that actively and unconditionally support Israel as a major function; see The Israel Lobby: Israel Affinity Organizations. 

These groups are projected to have a total in 2020 of over $6 billion. Below is the list, containing (L-R) the year of incorporation/ tax exemption, Tax ID number, Number of employees, Number of volunteers, Name, Revenue as of 2012, Projected revenue for 2020:

 

Operating Since Tax ID Number Number of Employees Number of Volunteers Name of Organization 2012 Revenue 2020 Projected Revenue
1962 136192275 31 0 Bar Ilan University of Israel aka American Friends of $343,494,721 $591,721,606
1914 131656634 154 47 American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee $316,241,721 $526,990,589
1936 131760102 4 32 United Israel Appeal $193,137,000 $125,993,929
1983 363256096 97 9 InterNational Fellowship of Christians and Jews $113,514,939 $370,857,186
1958 136227366 0 0 Feinberg Graduate School of the Weizmann Institute of Science $110,670,090 $163,565,804
1926 131659627 225 120 Jewish National Fund (Keren Kayemeth Israel) $103,460,271 $138,024,203
1922 131656651 203 285458 Hadassah, Women’s Zionist Organization of America $100,945,808 $51,235,026
1940 130434195 93 150 American Society for Technion – Israel Institute of Technology $91,660,482 $73,442,837
1944 131623886 85 40 American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science $71,423,000 $47,458,110
1981 133156445 130 69 Friends of the Israeli Defense Forces $68,314,942 $326,662,872
1992 136104086 5 29 PEF Israel Endowment Funds $67,778,630 $70,393,705
1931 131568923 74 210 American Friends of the Hebrew University $47,709,572 $34,263,937
1972 237182582 American Friends of the Israel Museum $34,137,504 $87,340,951
1979 942607722 51 270 New Israel Fund $29,702,523 $31,445,222
1881 135633307 76 90 Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society $25,418,714 $48,316,996
1955 131996126 29 39 American Friends of Tel Aviv University $24,886,619 $25,748,352
1940 131790719 49 150 American Friends of Magen David Adom $23,155,189 $30,343,516
2001 223804152 5 8 Nefesh B’Nefesh Jewish Souls United $20,415,350 $36,400,000
1969 135562424 104 30 ORT America $16,485,924 $22,900,294
1979 132995985 0 8 Central Fund of Israel $16,134,210 $74,182,272
1966 132563745 4 23 Jerusalem Foundation $15,110,967 $17,036,152
1982 980160122 0 0 Eschel – the Association  for the plan and dev svcs Aged in Israel $13,806,000 $16,994,280
1994 232742482 14 125 Jewish Funders Network $10,727,436 $131,878,165
1925 135631502 34 43 AMIT $8,543,270 $8,706,134
1986 133348313 1 0 American Friends of the Israel Democracy Institute $8,187,788 $15,468,245
1990 223090463 8 26 Friends of Yemin Orde $7,950,958 $23,094,828
1970 132670365 25 500 Emuh of America $6,082,411 $5,805,817
1998 113466176 1 0 Friends Of Ir David $5,884,950 $16,284,616
1988 363441392 315 100 Keshet $5,585,510 $8,679,153
2007 562676533 3 American Friends of Shalva Israel $5,458,568 $23,729,995
1982 133145161 4 1 American Committee for Tel Aviv Foundation $4,941,655 $13,676,580
1997 133988433 American Friends of Yeshiva Kodshim of Kodshim $4,892,315 $26,422,922
2000 113533002 3 Batya-Friends Of United Hatzalah $4,876,286 $6,866,813
2006 208202424 2 0 American Friends Of Leket Israel $4,278,550 $113,842,689
1951 132572288 22 125 Bnai Zion Foundation $4,196,521 $3,446,234
1963 135640819 4 0 General Israel Orphan Home For Girls Jerusalem $4,176,327 $2,318,672
1969 237049727 5 0 American Friends Of Rambam Medical Center $4,104,042 $205,639,439
1992 133621884 1 0 The Friends Of The Israel Antiquities Authoritity $4,083,243 $83,018,616
1974 237443023 2 The American Friends Of The Tel Aviv Museum Of Art $3,310,714 $4,274,368
2004 201933798 Friends Of Tzeirei Chabad In Israel $3,298,807 $32,366,336
2002 061669917 8 0 World ORT $3,165,589 $45,674,854
1995 133843506 34 Friends of Israel Scouts $3,101,445 $11,699,392
2004 201582478 10 American Friends Of Meir Panim $3,089,455 $3,859,880
1951 131664048 4 Amerian Israel Cultural Foundation $3,064,054 $2,020,066
1961 316100833 American Friends Of Alyn Hospital $2,694,198 $3,028,483
1982 133106175 8 10 Friends Of Yad Sarah $2,574,192 $8,335,184
2003 320081620 0 0 American Friends Of Libi $2,284,998 $27,667,195
1994 113195338 8 7 One Israel Fund, Ltd. $2,234,801 $1,390,295
1973 132724055 American Friends Of Kiryat Sanz Laniado Hospital $2,140,143 $925,325
1989 222867329 0 2 American Friends Of Viznitz In Israel $2,106,500 $5,452,106
1921 135590516 5 17 Na’amat Usa $1,913,909 $1,192,059
1987 133392711 Friends Of Israel Disabled Veterans Aka Beit Halochem $1,808,378 $2,915,122
2011 275126671 American Friends Of The Israel Sport Center For The Disabled $1,653,718 $8,536,350
2006 203585888 0 5 American Friends Of The Reut Institute $1,626,118 $3,936,247
1986 133329462 3 American Friends Of The Israel National Museum Of Science $1,535,932 $23,964,021
1996 133887075 2 5 Us Friends Of Yad Ezrah $1,445,879 $3,394,612
1997 133962392 American Friends Of The Yitzhak Rabin Ctr For The Study Of Israel $1,375,000 $8,449,520
2000 522193738 9 American Friends Of Lubavitch $1,319,958 $1,950,777
1966 526080692 3 American Friends Of Bnei Akiva Yeshivas In Israel $1,264,515 $924,215
2001 113585917 5 8 One Family Fund $1,192,865 $597,307
1981 133171815 3 0 Elem Israel (ELEM YOUTH IN DISTRESS) $1,051,129 $499,970
2009 260492682 Friends Of Israel Sci-Tech Schools $1,038,171 $2,166,060
1984 112706563 2 0 American Friends of Ateret Cohamen $1,036,408 $1,123,829
1982 112623719 5 1 Hebron Fund $960,496 $546,221
1984 133244347 American Friends Of The Cntrl Comm For Taharas Hamishpacha In Israel $903,818 $1,181,141
1981 133091674 American Friends Of The Open University Of Israel $837,128 $286,855
2002 061652733 American Friends Of The College Of Judea And Samaria $826,476 $1,380,437
2011 590173782 Alexander Muss Institute For Israel Education $775,242 $1,217,623
1992 133691494 0 4 American Friends Of The Israel Free Loan Association Inc. Aka AFIFLA $710,778 $2,472,821
1986 133441742 4 21 American Friends Of Neve Shalom-Wahat Al-Salam $709,883 $595,008
2010 208021512 Friends Of Yashar L Chayal $558,172 $2,905,428
1951 131940424 2 American Friends Of Reuth Medical & Life Care Centers $550,214 $227,009
1994 943201147 0 0 American Friends Of Koret Israel Economic Development Funds $514,910 $325,074
1959 135600414 4 American Friends Of Ponevez Yeshiva In Israel $480,344 $629,962
1997 311558409 0 0 Gush Etzion Foundation $419,927 $398,032
1979 112499314 Friends Of Akim USA $376,839 $198,272
1998 134015013 0 . American Friends Of Yeshiva High School Of Kiryat Arba $327,195 $771,395
2005 204015961 0 10 Christian Friends Of Israel America $318,640 $936,588
2012 454296987 American Friends Of The U.S.-Israel Binational Science Foundation $313,750
2003 542091671 0 3 American Friends Of The United Jewish Israel Appeal $271,860 $1,010,093
2007 260620192 Land Of Promise Foundation $228,439 $120,926
2013 900794238 American Friends Of The National Institute For Psychobiology Israel $219,360
2004 581959151 0 American Friends Of The Israel Union For Environmental Defense $199,037 $331,321
2004 412109553 American Friends Of Elon Moreh $169,249 $241,139
1998 113452714 3 Friends Of Yeshiva Chofetz Chaim Kolel-Israel $160,588 $421,700
1982 133129249 0 Friends Of The Israel Center For Social And Economic Progress $160,212 $485,878
1984 133202264 1 American Friends Of Dvi $159,524 $514,148
2012 260572473 American Friends Of Wgh Western Galilee Hospital Hariya Israel $144,350
2008 264515751 0 0 American Friends Of Israel Emergency Aid Fund $139,824 $825,678
1999 522171745 0 9 Eli-American Friends Of The Israel Associatn For Child Protection $129,753 $333,567
1988 222757351 North American Friends Of Israel Oceanographic Research Inc $106,725 $68,449
1987 232564116 American Friends Of Israel Elwyn $97,119 $69,338
1987 133458345 3 Friends Of-Or-Israel Charitable Trust $92,524 $109,786
2001 311740763 1 American Friends Of New Communities In Israel $81,120 $116,699
1999 113463752 American Friends Of Chabad Migdal Haemek Israel $71,245 $724,026
2008 261463102 Memphis Friends Of Israel $69,489 $333,136
2009 141970976 Friends Of The Israel Movement For Progressive Judaism $61,533 $272,949
2003 770602999 0 American Friends Of Bat Ayin Yeshiva $55,205 $4,979
2005 201935704 Friends Of The Israel Heart Society $54,925 $3,307
2007 203394641 Meor Israel Friends Of $52,080 $40,555
1978 362937918 American Friends Of Israel War Disabled Foundation $32,626 $41,008
2002 300002176 Friends Of Israel Update $28,580 $29,907
1986 341486476 American Friends Of Israel College 0f Technology For Women $26,883 $23,116
2003 510435358 0 0 International Academic Friends Of Israel $19,041 $2,779
2006 203540850 Friends Of Israel Galilean Campus For Education And Culture $13,808 $95,140
2011 262169840 American Friends Of The Israel National Council For The Child $7,819 $37,719
1994 113207262 North American Friends Of Amcha-Israel $224 $10,805
2005 200298896 Friends Of Israel Fire And Rescue Services $5 $0
2009 261378368 American Friends Of The Israel Chamber Music Society > >
1972 237163245 Ariel American Friends Of Midrasha And United Israel Institutions Ltd $1,684,268
2013 264147225 American Friends Of Connections Israel
2001 113628160 American Friends Of Ahavas Israel $1,370,587
1995 113275679 Friends Of Torah Institutions In Israel $89,508
2002 270013798 American Friends Yeshiva L Tzeirim Ner Israel D Chassidei Goor $602,134
330401076 Alliance For Competitive Technology $1,014,418
2005 202178658 Efrat Development Foundation USA
Totals 1,984 287,810 $2,005,337,841 $4,858,924,390
Operating Since Tax ID Number Number of Employees Number of Volunteers Name of Organization 2012 Revenue 2020 Projected Revenue
1950 362167034 471 12177 Jewish United Fund Of Metropolitan Chicago $93,654,220 $98,750,029
1964 956111928 29 100 Jewish Community Foundation of the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles $69,603,775 $67,295,725
1938 590624404 100 2200 Greater Miami Jewish Federation $65,704,827 $42,591,525
1937 951643388 186 3166 Jewish Federation Council Of Greater Los Angeles $58,761,492 $52,364,593
1950 520607957 150 7500 The Associated Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore $43,161,878 $46,891,224
1901 231500085 117 2000 Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia $36,742,007 $43,319,626
1946 520214465 83 7517 The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington $36,461,345 $31,319,678
1955 221487222 181 719 Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest NJ $35,305,689 $29,292,132
1957 251017602 75 736 Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh $33,673,350 $24,771,776
1968 581021791 67 900 Jewish Federation Of Greater Atlanta $30,791,644 $31,736,865
1947 390806312 79 700 Milwaukee Jewish Federation $29,175,499 $22,069,015
1935 470384659 553 602 Jewish Federation Of Omaha $25,752,449 $26,655,955
1922 210634489 1389 1193 Jewish Federation Of Southern New Jersey $23,169,968 $24,115,902
1979 591945109 100 90 Jewish Federation Of South Palm Beach County $21,628,430 $19,551,267
2004 201195592 83 81 UJA Federation Of Northern New Jersey $15,223,832 $11,434,079
1941 741109654 41 300 Jewish Federation Of Greater Houston $15,027,340 $20,639,632
1997 311501858 0 0 Foundation For The Charlotte Jewish Community $11,247,192 $12,682,910
1958 741469465 373 150 Jewish Community Association Of Austin $11,040,780 $9,622,451
1954 237182057 307 400 Tampa Jcc-Federation Inc $10,517,669 $11,795,911
1935 340714442 302 100 Youngstown Area Jewish Federation $10,515,566 $11,709,542
1947 590967823 27 500 United Jewish Community Of Broward County $10,210,356 $7,469,555
1942 750800654 49 200 Jewish Federation Of Greater Dallas $9,926,183 $9,378,306
1945 840402662 34 250 Allied Jewish Federation Of Colorado $9,656,287 $12,280,574
1941 951319015 United Jewish Federation Of San Diego $8,120,561 $7,852,092
1934 610444765 387 250 Jewish Community of Louisville $7,706,622 $8,491,746
1976 880098500 26 500 Jewish Federation of Las Vegas $7,703,949 $12,391,560
1942 910575950 45 160 Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle $7,484,361 $8,965,025
1972 237107693 28 1000 Greensboro Jewish Federation $6,595,717 $10,214,802
1955 31083745 20 345 Jewish Federation Of Columbus $6,584,049 $7,229,466
1961 160868942 26 200 Jewish Community Federation of Greater Rochester $6,346,390 $6,758,620
1910 310537488 78 175 Jewish Federation Of Greater Dayton $5,852,690 $7,726,885
1952 941167405 13 75 Jewish Federation Of Silicon Valley $5,732,209 $6,768,498
1966 952407026 52 780 Jewish Federation Orange County $5,690,156 $6,150,917
1986 222805163 17 500 United Jewish Federation Of Northeastern New York $4,998,224 $5,865,649
1971 540480621 61 0 United Jewish Community Of The Virginia Peninsula $4,854,100 $2,724,579
1949 60655482 34 420 Jewish Federation Of Greater Hartford $4,659,250 $4,865,552
1976 132869041 32 80 Jewish Community Relations Council Of New York $4,480,975 $5,237,514
1947 860096795 53 500  Jewish Federation Of Southern Arizo $4,318,536 $5,539,684
1941 231352338 140 20 Jewish Federation Of Greater Harrisburg $4,242,777 $4,645,115
1945 510064315 Jewish Federation Of Delaware Inc $4,189,383 $3,702,623
1993 541653165 8 31 Tidewater Jewish Federation $4,113,578 >
1970 591227747 26 263 The Jewish Federation of Sarasota-Matee Sarasota, FL $4,086,509 $4,227,810
1972 941156335 28 300 Jewish Community Relations Council Of San Francisco Marin & Peninsula $3,963,233 $3,711,692
1942 626077703 16 300 Jewish Federation Of Nashville And Middle Tennessee $3,820,463 $2,587,865
1948 730579243 110 50 Jewish Federation of Tulsa $3,786,998 $3,779,025
1945 050259003 0 100 Jewish Federation Foundation (Rhode Island) $3,635,629 $4,300,341
2000 341884695 14 70 Jewish Community Board Of Akron $3,546,478 $2,281,242
1942 540524512 11 150 Community Relations Council Of The Jewish Community Federation Of Richmond $3,445,482 $3,146,649
1939 620475747 13 200 Memphis Jewish Federation $3,439,508 $2,567,619
1961 344428259 31 30  Jewish Federation Of Greater Toledo $3,346,133 $3,123,776
1942 720408938 26 100 Jewish Federation Of Greater New Orleans $3,327,859 $3,741,694
1948 951647830 12 65 Jewish Federation Of Greater Long Beach And West Orange County $3,255,049 $2,690,083
1920 930386825 17 150 Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Portland $3,192,123 $3,226,464
1948 236396949 17 200 Jewish Federation Of The Lehigh Valley $3,093,298 $3,218,441
1959 42105783 12 850 Jewish Federation Of The North Shore Inc $2,908,939 $2,147,975
1986 221500549 15 350 Jewish Federation Of Greater Middlesex County $2,829,799 $2,705,714
1941 60655499 200 0 Jewish Center For Community Services Inc $2,770,619 $3,233,748
1977 590637864 13 300 Jewish Federation Of Jacksonville Inc $2,710,136 $2,544,073
2002 581384316 108 600 Durham-Chapel Hill Jewish Federation $2,654,696 $3,146,721
1951 860096784 33 355 Jewish Federation Of Greater Phoenix $2,630,802 $2,466,753
1960 237211881 10 49 Jewish Federation Of Palm Springs And Desert Area $2,408,963 $2,407,784
1949 160743210 13 0 Jewish
Federation of Greater
Buffalo
$2,400,903 $2,678,839
1973 231728784 20 55 Jewish Federation Of Reading Pennsylvania $2,398,380 $1,077,957
1979 390867186 176 200 Jewish Federation of Madison $2,358,530 $2,631,354
1970 631045456 13 55 Birmingham Jewish Federation $2,333,028 $3,001,894
1944 042104347 30 1000 Jewish Community Relations Council Of Greater Boston $2,327,033 $2,837,957
1942 741109662 27 100 Jewish Federation Of San Antonio $2,276,184 $2,528,518
1956 066068624 12 0 UJA Federation of Greenwich $2,206,254 $2,152,119
1972 237397882 0 32 Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Long Beach & West Orange County $2,067,764 $3,110,747
1947 590946923 8 100 Jewish Federation Of Greater Orlando $1,958,713 $1,974,569
2000 10530420 91 26 Jewish Community Alliance Of Southern Maine $1,735,931 $1,822,968
1956 580566231 4 275 Savannah Jewish Federation $1,670,644 $1,555,984
1944 42104363 33 200 Jewish Federation of Central Massachusetts $1,545,555 $1,429,735
1974 237354759 14 110 Jewish Federation Of Greater Santa Barbara $1,512,018 $1,357,668
1952 576000188 13 15 Charleston Jewish Federation $1,460,881 $1,224,268
1982 592151725 4 48 Jewish Federation Of Collier County $1,458,368 $1,336,519
1942 620475677 28 147 Jewish Community Federation of Greater Chattanooga $1,431,051 $1,635,062
1991 382711480 10 110 The Jewish Federation Of Greater Ann Arbor $1,337,503 $1,399,767
1942 741168038 57 0 Jewish Federation of El Paso $1,299,954 $1,435,572
1956 750808797 11 10 Jewish Federation of Fort Worth and Tarrant County $1,289,550 $800,473
1955 350888766 45 150 Jewish Federation Of Northwest India Inc $1,189,059 $1,203,788
1964 237174039 2 30 The Jewish Community Foundation Of Princeton Mercer Bucks $1,188,966 $2,130,923
1914 420835321 43 75 Jewish Federation Of Greater Des Moines $1,183,398 $1,233,157
1992 620452960 98 100 Knoxville Jewish Federation $1,173,907 $1,290,203
1987 561553301 49 300 Raleigh-Cary Jewish Federation Inc $1,171,538 $1,116,822
1953 520214465 19 58 Jewish Community Relations Council Of Greater Washington $1,135,738 $1,423,839
1995 521912836 13 150 Baltimore Jewish Council Inc $1,128,751 $1,205,743
1983 221668993 5 400 Jewish Federation Of Somerset, Hunterdon, And Warren Counties $1,098,780 $1,245,883
1964 590697685 Jewish Federation Of Pinellas & Pasco Counties FL $1,085,617 $786,877
1994 042131409 11 300 Jewish Federation of the Berkshires $1,077,675 $1,348,728
1942 730579276 Jewish Federation Of Greater Oklahoma City $1,061,688 $1,279,377
1941 210632971 0 50 Jewish Federation Of Atlantic And Cape May Counties $1,041,998 $1,205,788
1918 150543614 7 250 Jewish Federation Of Central New York $1,012,100 $742,669
1985 133268920 5 100 Jewish Federation of Rockland County $918,445 $1,177,129
1959 410826434 10 231 Jewish Community Relations Council Minnesota & The Dakotas $899,144 $1,118,738
1990 237300057 15 67 Jewish Federation of Broome County $886,416 $785,462
1965 850158242 5 23 The Jewish Federation Of New Mexico $861,968 $723,849
1953 350941124 12 100 Jewish Federation Of St Joseph Valley $793,170 $929,979
1980 570704341 5 20 Columbia Jewish Federation $786,872 >
1978 591774958 2 55 Jewish Federation Of Volusia & Flagler Counties $768,207 $859,611
1975 510138674 18 0 Jewish Federation Of Greater Manchester $762,503 $842,594
1976 132856699 Westchester Jewish Council $741,202 $744,229
1950 381359257 4 100 Flint Jewish Federation $718,389 $405,478
1952 240809371 7 101 Jewish Federation Of Northeastern Pennsylvania $688,684 $653,332
1969 386099686 48 80 Jewish Federation Of Grand Rapids $686,053 $761,692
1994 954443373 21 0 Jewish Federation Of The Greater San Gabriel & Pomo Valleys $620,400 $523,837
1978 941156558 11 144 Jewish Federation Of The Sacramento Region $606,577 $912,318
1950 150533576 30 100 Jewish Community Federation Of The Mohawk Valley $596,801 $556,399
2004 205631988 Jewish Community Relations Council of Saint Louis $575,689 $600,319
1971 237084946 Canton Jewish Community Federation $573,612 $674,715
1978 141584342 5 75 Jewish Federation of Greater Orange County $498,629 $664,095
1937 383011194 Jewish Community Relations Council Of Metropolitan Detroit $488,467 $485,899
1977 222140175 6 0 Jewish Federation Of Ocean County $469,627 $412,046
1957 870282380 4 24 United Jewish Federation Of Utah $432,438 $183,152
1951 720408964 1 0 North Louisiana Jewish Federation $431,667 $293,238
1988 42992252 0 0 Merrimack Valley United Jewish Communities $429,944 $427,163
1977 310906786 25 100 Jewish Federation of the Bluegrass $377,938 $381,019
1975 370662593 4 24 Jewish Federation Of Springfield Illinois $375,562 $383,561
1952 486119344 17 100 Mid-Kansas Jewish Federation $374,415 $383,073
1912 710245512 Jewish Federation Of Arkansas $372,696 $374,616
1978 237344693 2 0 Champaign-Urbana Jewish Federation $362,820 $409,890
1985 222343478 3 0 Jewish Federation Of Cumberland County $347,370 $444,717
1955 46006566 3 75 Jewish Federation of
Greater New Bedford
$341,487 $231,966
1992 141751875 3 300 Jewish Federation of Dutchess County $338,328 $365,688
1943 586044144 Augusta Jewish Federation $332,174 $410,356
1974 237099139 Jewish Community Relations Council Of Indianapolis $299,575 $350,921
1972 237208853 1 21 Jewish Federation of Greater Baton Rouge $293,342 $307,294
1937 630288849 Jewish Federation Of Central Alabama Inc $289,635 $375,508
1949 420698205 Jewish Federation of Sioux City $272,535 $241,276
1948 370661214 4 Jewish Federation Of Southern Illinois, Southeast Missouri, And Western Kentucky $269,495 $315,029
1942 350869051 11 15 Fort Wayne Jewish Federation $266,187 $277,597
1983 36-3048783 2 Jewish Federation Of The Quad Cities $246,268 $238,239
1950 370697159 4 Jewish Federation Of Peoria $243,527 $261,107
2000 161562220 11 30 Jewish Federation of the Twin Tiers $234,013 $273,440
1977 133099520 Jewish Community Council Of Pelham Parkway $204,555 $191,686
1962 66063384 1 0 Jewish Federation Of Danbury $201,609 $192,787
1946 362167845 Jewish Federation Of Greater Rockford $115,978 $59,063
1942 250984608 0 35 Jewish Community Council Of Erie $67,644 >
1953 221533506 17 476 Jewish Federation Of Central New Jersey > >
Totals 7,701 57,841 $946,557,537 $917,533,938
Operating Since Tax ID Number Number of Employees Number of Volunteers Name of Organization 2012 Revenue 2020 Projected Revenue
1963 530217164 401 0 American Israel Public Affairs Committee $71,844,486 $157,348,849
1946 131818723 409 3500 Anti-Defamation League $53,574,910 $66,972,652
1935 131624240 144 185 Jewish Federations of North America $49,030,087 $37,839,387
1906 135563393 294 1896 American Jewish Committee $47,887,833 $33,422,450
1989 521623781 0 0 American Israel Education Foundation $43,681,414 $133,816,849
2002 230053483 0 5 Jewish Agency for Israel – North American Council $12,221,956 $20,168,779
1985 521386172 17 50 Republican Jewish Coalition $10,067,507 $11,376,271
1984 521376034 63 15 Washington Institute for Near East Policy $9,732,737 $16,359,891
2001 010566033 72 97 Israel Emergency Alliance aka Standwithus $8,716,377 $14,248,475
2001 134174402 37 32 Foundation for the Defense of Democracies $7,267,839 $38,496,438
1936 530179971 264 295 B’i B’rith International $7,002,140 $7,802,064
2003 371472882 39 10 The Israel Project $5,901,857 $16,080,274
2007 223951652 19 0 Israeli American Council $5,530,886 $10,211,421
1997 522068483 19 5 Middle East Media Research Institute $4,909,892 $14,257,190
1986 237749796 12 Middle East Forum $4,676,303 $10,409,993
2005 202777557 0 25 J Street Education Fund $4,316,060 $11,500,032
1976 521233683 15 0 Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs $3,783,167 $7,668,883
1983 521332702 33 10 Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting $3,601,895 $6,236,794
1988 521601976 15 21 Center for Security Policy $3,289,105 $11,248,765
1944 131624104 35 300 Jewish Council for Public Affairs $3,128,795 $2,944,759
2002 161616489 26 The David Project $2,824,763 $5,737,356
2006 134331855 0 0 Investigative Project on Terrorism Foundation $2,524,640 $4,272,406
1920 135628475 28 73 Zionist Organization of America $2,489,207 $3,721,577
2007 133610041 16 Commentary $2,463,839 $1,855,992
2008 800263559 0 0 Israel Strategic Alternative Energy Foundation $2,108,436 $5,906,631
2012 460540994 2 The Israel Institute $2,014,918
1978 133509867 10 0 Americans for Peace Now $1,839,184 $1,656,581
2008 262387657 4 United Against a Nuclear Iran $1,790,454 $5,642,496
1982 133116652 5 Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations Fund $1,619,517 $2,613,619
2010 273480535 0 0 Friends of Israel Initiative $805,883 $3,898,427
2010 272572894 Emergency Committee for Israel $1,450,157 $4,876,514
2006 205845679 6 3 Clarion Fund $1,374,578 $151,442
2009 264392915 15 16 Foreign Policy Initiative $1,344,013 $3,224,163
2007 262971061 0 0 American Friends of NGO Monitor aka Report $1,246,110 $6,681,979
2001 061611859 2 0 Middle East Media Watch DBA Honest Reporting $1,229,784 $12,470,712
2011 300664947 13 6 Israel on Campus Coalition $1,158,638 $129,316
1990 521706068 National Jewish Democratic Council $1,138,648 $741,722
2004 201651102 11 Hasbara Fellowships $1,132,933 $1,123,949
2012 454724565 10 1 Gatestone Institute $1,099,023
2007 260501656 3 4 International Israeli Allies Caucus Foundation $1,066,890 $33,212,115
1972 132700517 6 0 National Conferences on Soviet Jewry $981,622 $1,257,270
2003 141891915 2 12 Israel Venture Network $775,242 $2,397,856
1964 132500881 9 Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations $609,761 $568,184
1985 521433850 3 0 National Jewish Policy Center $603,781 $685,664
2001 770571579 0 0 Israel21C $575,811 $593,632
2008 263402247 0 5 Israel-America Academic Exchange $551,100 $4,090,513
2004 201381912 5 0 Institute for the Study of Global Anti-Semitism and Policy $490,881 >
1994 943092706 0 0 Facts and Logic about the Middle East $465,341 $852,097
2006 201437733 Secure Community Network $433,960 $468,121
1934 131675650 0 0 Jewish Labor Committee $419,965 $403,074
2008 261416892 Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa $394,184 $2,396,842
1993 132679404 6 30 American Zionist Movement $387,922 $770,585
2011 451683502 United Nations Watch $380,488
2010 272402908 5 0 Lawfare Project $358,939 $1,755,801
1932 131679610 0 0 American Jewish Congress $357,569 $65,642
1916 135611746 1 11 Religious Zionists of America Mizrachi Hapoel Hamizrachi $357,321 $90,863
2010 453204617 4 Louis D. Brandeis Center $351,913 $9,717,074
2011 450949784 4 Jewish News Service $334,978 $1,401,657
2003 421565640 2 Scholars for Peace in the Middle East $286,340 $2,819,322
2006 204329740 Endowment for Middle East Truth $278,166 $4,524,744
1972 510181418 0 0 Americans for a Safe Israel $266,286 $196,287
2002 352162870 Minnesotans Against Terrorism $228,210 $213,991
2012 460774311 0 2 AMCHA Initiative $199,155
1984 680028695 0 20 Jewish Public Affairs Committee Of California $157,467 $134,418
2010 263766713 Judaism Alive $130,334 $270,876
1996 113259920 Phyllis Chesler Organization $122,437 $111,682
2005 270095260 Center for Democracy and Human Rights in Saudi Arabia $53,280 $52,309
2003 050538790 Myths and Facts $18,085 $11,043
Totals $403,457,399 $762,176,762

Operating Since Tax ID Number Number of Employees Number of Volunteers Name of Organization 2012 Revenue 2020 Projected Revenue
1980 521309391 453 400 United States Holocaust Memorial Museum $124,145,507 $171,860,770
1999 134092050 53 0 Birthright Israel Foundation $101,960,863 $473,160,839
1984 521844823 1541 69 Hillel Foundation $27,903,405 $17,966,418
1985 953964928 121 274 Simon Wiesenthal Center $23,754,251 $19,457,068
1917 135599486 64 0 Jewish Community Centers Association of North America – JCC Association $21,120,717 $35,744,537
1980 133041381 13 100 Women’s International Zionist Organization $3,411,787 $4,561,983
2004 113666684 5 0 Aish International – Hasbara Fellowships $2,915,757 $908,783
1914 430769468 16 100 Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity $2,784,475 $4,087,568
1994 521865861 6 0 American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise $2,642,808 $27,933,788
1917 130887610 21 Jewish Telegraphic Agency $2,565,355 $2,963,430
1931 131681984 10 100 Women’s League for Conservative Judaism $2,102,258 $2,130,011
1945 136141078 0 0 Alpha Epsilon Pi Foundation, Inc $917,677 $1,350,588
1979 521171542 2 0 MERCAZ USA Zionist Organization of the Conservative Movement $334,440 $242,787
2006 204903202 4 10 Holocaust Education Center in the Desert $175,892 $17,278
Totals 2,309 1,053 $316,735,192 $762,385,848

Totals:

  • 14,076 employees
  • 353,337 volunteers
  • 2012 revenue $3.7 billion
  • Projected 2020 revenue  6.3 billion

 


Influential Pro-Israel Individuals

• Daniel Shapiro, past US Ambassador to Israel, gave a speech in which he detailed his extremely close, life-long ties to Israel, concluding: “[A]s a committed Jewish American, with deep roots in the American Jewish community and warm bonds of affection with Israel, I will have an opportunity to draw on those associations to help make the U.S.-Israel relationship, strong as it is, even stronger in the years ahead.” He stated that “ensuring Israel’s future” drives all US policies. See “US Ambassador: Support for Israel drives all US policies

According to Wikipedia: Shapiro served as a professional staff member on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, he was a legislative assistant and senior foreign policy adviser to Senator Dianne Feinstein, he sat on the National Security Council under President Bill Clinton, he was deputy chief of staff (primarily on foreign policy issues) for U.S. Senator Bill Nelson, he was vice president of the Washington, D.C., lobbying firm Timmons & Company, served as an advisor to then-U.S. Sen. Barack Obama on Middle East and Jewish community also assisting as strategist and fundraiser, accompanied Obama on his July 2008 trip to Israel; In January 2009, Shapiro was appointed senior director for the Middle East and North Africa of the U.S. National Security Council. Focusing on Israel, he attended every Israel-related meeting, and met with every senior Israeli diplomat and military officer who visited Washington, D.C. Shapiro often accompanied U.S. Special Envoy for Middle East Peace George J. Mitchell on his trips to the region, and played a central role in talks regarding the Middle East Peace Process and the strengthening of military cooperation between the U.S. and Israel. He maintained close relations with Benyamin Netanyahu, in spite of tensions between the Israeli prime minister and President Obama.[14] Shapiro took leave of the President of IsraelReuven Rivlin, on January 17, 2017 before holding his final meeting with Netanyahu two days later, which one newspaper described as a “terse farewell.”After concluding his service as ambassador to Israel, Shapiro became a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies (Israel) at Tel Aviv University.

• Howard Berman, Democratic Congressman from California, acknowledged in a 2008 interview with the Forward, “Even before I was a Democrat, I was a Zionist.” He went on to explain that “an interest in the Jewish state” was one of the main reasons he first sought a seat on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, where he is the top Democrat. Berman, who is known as “the Congressman from Hollywood,” also told the Forward, “He is particularly keen on getting the House more involved in Iran-related issues.”

• Martin Indyk, former U.S. Ambassador to Israel (he was naturalized as an American citizen before being nominated for this position); currently Special Envoy for Israeli Palestinian Negotiations. At one point he had his security clearance revoked, the only time this has happened to a U.S. ambassador. See video.

• Haim Saban, multimedia mogul whose net worth is over $3 billion dollars, has said, “I’m a one-issue guy and my issue is Israel.” In 2010, he told New Yorker magazine that his greatest concern is to protect Israel by strengthening the United States-Israel relationship. Saban has bluntly outlined his formula for gaining influence in American politics: make donations to political parties, establish think tanks, and control media outlets. He tried to buy Time and Newsweek magazines, and has made repeated bids for the Los Angeles Times because he considers the paper to be pro-Palestinian. He donated $9 million to Democrats in the 2002 election cycle alone.

• Sheldon Adelson, a businessman and casino magnate, is worth, with his wife Miriam, over $43.4 billion dollars. He owns a number of resorts as well as the Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom, the most largely circulated paper in Israel. Adelson set a new record in political donations by giving $70 million (to Republicans) in the 2012 elections, nearly triple the previous highest amount. He also funds pro-Israel organizations such as Birthright Israel, which takes thousands of young Jewish Americans on recruiting visits to Israel.

• Rahm Emanuel, powerful Democratic politician, was a Congressman, chair of the House Democratic caucus, mayor of Chicago (despite allegations that he had not been a Chicago resident), in Bill Clinton’s administration (had been Clinton’s main fundraiser), White House Chief of Staff under President Obama, etc. Volunteered with the Israeli military during the first Gulf War (his father had served in the pre-Israel terrorist group the Irgun), was Israeli citizen until age of 18. Jeffrey Goldberg says Emanuel “is deeply and emotionally committed to Israel and its safety. We’ve talked about the issue a dozen times; it’s something he thinks about constantly.” See video.

• Ronn D. Torossian, public relations mogul who is a “friend of nearly everyone who’s anyone in Washington.” Israel is his “first love.”

• Stuart Weitzman, shoe designer, donated $1 million to Maccabi USA. The Maccabiah is an Olympics-style competition held every four years in Israel.

• David Satterfield, U.S. diplomat who holds the rank of “Career Minister” who has worked on Middle East issues for over 40 years.. Among his positions have been second-highest diplomat at the US Embassy in Baghdad. In 2002 Satterfield discussed secret national security matters in two meetings with Steven J. Rosen, a top AIPAC official.

• James S. Tisch: Chairperson of the Jewish Agency Board of Governors. According to its website, Tisch is President and Chief Executive Officer of Loews Corporation, chairman of the Board of Directors of Diamond Offshore Drilling, Inc., a member of the Board of Directors of CNA Financial Corporatio, a director on the board of the General Electric Company, Chairman of the Board of WNET, parent of WNET Channel 13 and WLIW Channel 21, a member of the Board of Directors of The New York Public Library, serves on the Executive Committee of the Partnership for New York City, a Trustee of the Mount Sinai Medical Center, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, President and Chairman Emeritus of Federation Employment and Guidance Service (F.E.G.S.), past Chairman of the Board of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, past Chairman of the Board of United Jewish Communities, past President of UJA-Federation of New York, and a former director on the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Irwin Hochberg is an example of our interrelated these various organizations are. A 2017 obituary reported: “Hochberg was a member of the Jewish Agency for Israel’s board of governors; national campaign chair of State of Israel Bonds; chairman of the Anti-Defamation League International Division; vice-chair of the Zionist Organization of America (ZOA); a member of the World Jewish Congress’ executive committee; an executive committee member of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC); a founding trustee of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy; president of the American Friends of the Open University of Israel; chairman of the Middle East Forum’s executive committee; as well as being a member of the boards of directors for the Jewish National Fund, Fuel For Truth, America-Israel Friendship League, American Friends of Beit Hatfutsot (the Museum of the Jewish People), the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA) and the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs (JINSA).

“As a leader of UJA-Federation, an organization that praised Hochberg’s commitment to philanthropy as “unparalleled,” Hochberg helped guide the landmark 1986 merger of United Jewish Appeal and the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies, as well as steering UJA-Federation’s Project Renewal.”

Mark Dubowitz – CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (see above)

Bernard Marcus – Founder of Home Depot and Trump’s second biggest donor after Sheldon Adelson. Helped push Trump to withdraw from Iran agreement. Funds many pro-Israel groups.

Other individuals include:

Journalists

NYT’s Ethan Bronner’s son was in the Israeli army; more info on NY Times)

Columnist David brooks‘ son similarly was in the Israeli army.

New York Times magazine staff writer Ronen Bergman lavished praise on AIPAC for ‘having Israel’s back’…

New York Times columnists Roger Cohen, Bret Stephens and David Brooks are proudly Zionist;

Bari Weiss comes out of a career as an Israel advocate (her father is a stalwart at AIPAC). Weiss has been called a “Zionist fanatic of near-unhinged proportions” – and says she “happily plead[s] guilty as charged.” Weiss has a history of working to cancel people and suppress negative facts about Israel. Weiss attended a program in Israel that trains “cadres” of Jewish Americans to bring societal change in the U.S. – see this

Bari Weiss at Jewish community center in NY on December 5, 2019. (Screenshot)

Pundits like Jeffrey Goldberg Kenneth Pollack, Daniel Pipes, Bill Kristol, Irving Moskowitz (more)

The Islamophobia Industry: Institutions and individuals who promote Islamophobia, including Aubrey and Joyce Chernick, Frank Gaffney, Pamela Geller, David Horowitz, Stephen EmersonDavid Yerushalmi, and others. (more)

Eric Weider, publisher of American History, Civil War Times, Military History, and eight other history magazines.

Hollywood tycoon Arnon Milchan, who produced Pretty Woman, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, and Fight Club, worked for the Mossad.

More information here

Politicians

Charles “Chuck” Schumer, top Democraatic leder in the Senate

Political Action Committees

Top Contributors, 2017-2018 – Center for Responsive Politics

Contributor Amount
JStreetPAC $4,037,965
NorPAC $1,125,577
Republican Jewish Coalition $501,097
Joint Action Cmte for Political Affairs $306,298
Florida Congressional Cmte $278,700
National Action Cmte $199,000
Citizens Organized PAC $181,000
Desert Caucus $135,000
Bi-County PAC $126,000
Friends of Israel $115,400
American Principles $115,000
Maryland Assn for Concerned Citizens $91,100
SunPAC $84,200
To Protect Our Heritage PAC $75,900
Heartland PAC $65,000
Washington PAC $64,500
Americans United in Support of Democracy $59,500
National PAC $54,200
J Street $53,193
Grand Canyon State Caucus $53,000

Contributions to:
Democrats    Republicans    Liberal Groups    Conservative Groups    Nonpartisan 
 

The following groups and individuals signed a letter opposing BDS. (Some of these groups may already be listed above.)

  • Academic Council for Israel
  • Academic Engagement Network
  • Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity (AEPi)
  • Alums for Campus Fairness – National
  • Alums for Campus Fairness – UC Davis
  • Alums for Campus Fairness – UC Riverside
  • Alums for Campus Fairness – UCLA
  • AMCHA Initiative
  • America Israel Cooperative Enterprise
  • American Association of Jewish Lawyers and Jurists
  • American Council of Trustees and Alumni
  • American Institute for Jewish Research
  • American Truth Project
  • Americans Fighting Antisemitism
  • Americans for Peace and Tolerance
  • B’nai B’rith International
  • Bobcats for Israel at Ohio University
  • Boston Israel Action Committee
  • Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law
  • Bulldogs for Israel (Brooklyn College)
  • California Association of Scholars
  • Campus Anti-Semitism Task Force of the North Shore
  • Center for Combating Antisemitism
  • Christians and Jews United for Israel
  • Club Z
  • Coalition for Jewish Values
  • Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA)
  • CUFI on Campus
  • Davis Faculty for Israel
  • Eagles Wings
  • Endowment for Middle East Truth (EMET)
  • Facts and Logic About the Middle East (FLAME)
  • Grandchildren of Holocaust Survivors
  • Hasbara Fellowships
  • Herut North America, U.S. Division
  • Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel
  • Iranian American Jewish Federation
  • Iranian Jewish Women’s Organization
  • Israel in NYC
  • Israel Matters
  • Israel on Campus Coalition
  • Israel Peace Initiative (IPI)
  • Israeli-American Civic Action Network
  • Israeli-American Civic Education Institute
  • JAM
  • Jewish American Affairs Committee of Indiana
  • Jewish War Veterans of the USA
  • Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa (JIMENA)
  • Middle East Forum
  • Middle East Political and Information Network (MEPIN)
  • National Christian Leadership Conference for Israel
  • National Conference on Jewish Affairs
  • National Council of Young Israel
  • NCSY
  • NH4Israel
  • North Carolina Coalition for Israel
  • Proclaiming Justice to the Nations
  • Rabbinical Alliance of America
  • Rhode Island Coalition for Israel
  • Russian Jewish Community Foundation
  • Scholars for Peace in the Middle East
  • Simon Wiesenthal Center
  • Slugs for Israel (University of California Santa Cruz)
  • StandWithUs
  • StandWithUs Saidoff Legal Department
  • Stop Anti-Semitism Now
  • Stop BDS on Campus
  • Students and Parents Against Campus Anti-Semitism
  • Students Supporting Israel at Columbia
  • Students Supporting Israel at Drake University
  • Students Supporting Israel at San Jose State University
  • Students Supporting Israel at UCLA
  • Students Supporting Israel National
  • Swarthmore Alumni Against Antisemitism on Campus
  • The Israel Christian Nexus
  • Tufts Friends of Israel
  • WoMen Fight Antisemitism
  • Young Jewish Conservatives
  • Zionist Organization of America
  • ZOA’s Fuel for Truth

* PACs: Usually a PAC can only donate $5,000 for a primary and $5,000 for general elections. But with thirty “unaffiliated” PACs marching in lockstep behind AIPAC, this can balloon up to $300,000 for any given candidate. The extent of this influence remains hidden from view. They also use “bundling,” which means taking various individual donations and handing them over en masse to a candidate, so that on the books it shows up as several individual donations, but everyone except the FEC understands who’s really controlling the money.

A 1996 book called Stealth PACs reports that “in 1988, Israel’s lobby had 78 PACs spending more than $5.5 million to bribe Congress to vote more aid for Israel. That was more than total contributions together of the two next largest special interests in the United States—the real estate lobby and the teamsters.”

During the 2010 elections, Israel-affiliated contributions were the third highest of any special interest at nearly $3 million (with almost equal amounts given to Democrats and Republicans). But because that number was broken into pieces and hidden behind unrelated names, pro-Israel contributions didn’t “officially” make the top twenty.

One example is Washington Pac, founded by Morris Amitay, former head of AIPAC. Its website states: “…over three million dollars has been carefully distributed on a bipartisan basis to Senators, Representatives, and candidates… Its Capitol Hill location enables the PAC to meet with Representatives and Senators on an almost daily basis. The Advisory Board holds regular luncheons with U.S. Senate candidates, and the PAC’s newsletter has earned an esteemed reputation for its analysis of the U.S. Senate races.”

• Teva: Not all PACs with connections to Israel are included in the pro-Israel list. For example, the parents company of the Teva PAC Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, is Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, an Israeli company, the world’s largest generic drug maker. It has achieved its astronomical sales by at times infringing on patents (although Judge Sidney Stein rejected a similar claim – Stein also rejected a freedom of speech law suit related to the Palestinian issue ). Teva’s website states, “Teva Government & Public Affairs seeks to provide legislators and policy makers with both policy and political assistance on issues of importance to patients, the company, its customers, and the pharmaceutical industry as a whole.

The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs reports on PACs frequently. For example, see their list of pro-Israel PAC contributions to candidates in 2010.



Notes:

There’s no card to carry that says one is part of the Israel lobby. But taken as a whole, this sampling of powerful pro-Israel organizations demonstrates how information is systematically skewed before it reaches the American public. Politicians and journalists are systematically harassed, often losing jobs, if they step out of line.

There is no comparable pressure from the Arab-American side, much less from stateless Palestinians, who have no army, navy or air force; little money; and very little cultural influence or PR savvy. For example, in 2010 pro-Israel PACs gave $3 million to candidates while the two Arab-American PACs—Arab American Leadership Council PAC and Arab American Political Action Committee—gave a total of $36,500.

Many members of the Israel lobby have promoted policies against Iran and Iraq.

Below is an example of their actions.

A 2010 full-page ad in the New York Times suggested, falsely, that Iran has a nuclear program and endangers the U.S. The ad was designed to create fear and hatred of a country that has done the U.S. no harm but that Israel dislikes. The logos of the groups that placed the ad were at the bottom of the ad – we have listed them below:

Our operations are funded solely by generous individuals like you. Your contribution will help us continue shining a light on the Israel/Palestine situation and the U.S. connection.

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Recommended books:

They Dare to Speak OutThey Dare to Speak Out: People and Institutions Confront Israel’s Lobby, by Paul Findley

The Lobby: Jewish Political Power and American Foreign Policy, by Edward Tivnan

Big Israel: How Israel’s Lobby Moves America,  by Grant F. Smith

The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, by John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt

Against Our Better Judgment: The Hidden History of How the U.S. Was Used to Create Israel, by Alison Weir

Alfred Lilienthal’s books

Additional resources

Washington Report on Middle East Affairs

The Link

Council for the National Interest

Institute for Research: Middle Eastern Policy

We also recommend subscribing to the If Americans Knew news blog, where we post new items on this category frequently, as well as on Israel-Palestine in general.

Israeli human rights violations

CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE VIDEOS ON THE ISRAEL LOBBY

Our operations are funded solely by generous individuals like you. Your contribution will help us continue shining a light on the Israel/Palestine situation and the U.S. connection.

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