Several Israeli Torah institutions are joining together to obtain legal guidance and representation following a new investigation by the Charity Commission for England and Wales into British charities that support institutions beyond the Green Line.

The effort is being coordinated through Rabbi Nechemya Malinowitz, a member of the World Zionist Organization executive on behalf of Eretz Hakodesh and founder of the Igud Yeshivos and Seminaries for Bnei Chul. Several mosdos affected by the investigation have turned to Rabbi Malinowitz in recent days seeking assistance.

In response, the association has begun gathering the relevant institutions in order to provide coordinated legal advice and unified representation before the British authorities. Officials involved in the effort say contact has already been made with a British law firm specializing in the field, as well as with government and regulatory figures, in order to assess the implications of the inquiry and prepare a joint response.

The Charity Commission announced this week that it had opened a fact-finding statutory class inquiry into concerns involving multiple charities operating in areas the UK refers to as illegal Israeli settlements. According to the Commission, the inquiry will examine the extent of charitable funds used in those areas, the purposes for which the money was spent, and whether the spending was in furtherance of the charities’ registered charitable purposes. The initial inquiry includes eight unnamed charities, though the Commission said the probe may later be expanded to include others.

It is important to note that, contrary to some inaccurate reports, the inquiry is directed at the British charities and their trustees, not at individual donors themselves.

The investigation comes after Labour MP Melanie Ward, formerly chief executive of Medical Aid for Palestinians, submitted a complaint in June alleging that 32 British charities had transferred at least £28 million to institutions operating beyond the Green Line.
The Igud warned that any expansion of the inquiry could have serious implications for numerous mosdos that rely on donations from the United Kingdom. The association is urging any institution that receives donations from Britain, or operates through a British “friends of” charity, to contact the Igud as soon as possible so information can be centralized and a proper legal strategy can be prepared.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)