The Charity Commission, the regulator of charities in England and Wales, issued the “official warning” after finding the trustees of Jewish charity, the Chabad Lubavitch Centre, had acted “outside the charity’s purposes” and “failed to safeguard its best interests and its reputation.”

The charity was found to have set up a fundraiser page in October 2023 to raise funds for a soldier of the IDF stationed in northern Israel.

The page, which was eventually removed in January 2024 following complaints by pro-Palestine activists, still managed to raise around £2,280. Of those monies, £937 was sent directly to an individual soldier.

According to the Charity Commission, the Chabad trustees were unable to account for how those funds were spent. The remaining funds were spent on “non-lethal military equipment” purchased by the trustees and sent to the same soldier in Israel.

The Director for Regulatory Services at the Charity Commission, Helen Earner, said: “It is not lawful, or acceptable, for a charity to raise funds to support a soldier of a foreign military. Our official warning requires the charity to set things right and is a clear message to other charities to stay true to their established purposes.”

In UK law, charities with appropriate purposes can raise funds to promote the efficiency of the UK armed forces. However, providing aid or military supplies to any foreign armed force is not a charitable purpose, and no charity can legally undertake such activity.

The Charity Commission listed the charity’s actual purposes as “to advance the orthodox Jewish religion, advance orthodox Jewish education, and to relieve poverty and sickness.”

The official warning imposes a number of requirements on the charity’s trustees to remedy the misconduct and/or mismanagement. Any failure by the charity to implement the requirements in the official warning may lead to further regulatory action.

In a statement, the Redbridge Palestine Solidarity Network (RPSN), a group made up of local residents who lobbied the authorities to act on this issue, welcomed the formal warning but admitted concerns still remain over the center.

“We welcome the formal warning issued to Chabad Lubavitch Centres North East London and Essex for their unacceptable fundraising activities. However, we believe tougher action is necessary, as supporting efforts tied to an ongoing genocide is deeply troubling.

It is alarming they acted so openly, and despite raising concerns with local leaders like Jas Athwal and Wes Streeting, our warnings were not adequately addressed.”

Other Examples

This is not the first Jewish charity that has fundraised for the IDF.

Earlier in 2024, Middle East Eye reported that the Charity Commission had been urged to investigate the UK Friends of the Association for the Wellbeing of Israel’s Soldiers (UK-AWIS), which was also asking for donations to support forces taking part in Operation Swords of Iron.

In a post on its Facebook page on November 17, UK-AWIS said: “Each generous donation allows us to better provide essentials for our frontline soldiers in Operation Swords of Iron.”

Since then, the website and social media content belonging to the British charity under scrutiny over its fundraising activities is “no longer accessible online.”

The number of people killed in Gaza is significantly higher than the figure reported by Gaza’s authorities, a peer-reviewed study by researchers from a leading health research university in the UK has found.

According to findings announced by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and published in The Lancet journal, there were an estimated 64,260 “traumatic injury deaths” in Gaza between October 7, 2023 and June 30, 2024.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza put the figure at 37,877 at the time.

This means the ministry has under-reported the death toll due to violence by approximately 41%, the researchers found.

As of October, the number of Gazans killed by violence was thought to exceed 70,000, the study said, based on the estimated underreporting rate.

The IDF has been widely accused of committing war crimes, and even genocide, by human rights organizations.

Israel says it must wipe out Hamas which poses an existential threat to the Jewish state.

Source: 5Pillars

Islamophobia Awareness Month was founded in 2012 by a coalition of Muslim organizations, including the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) and Muslim Engagement and Development (MEND).

The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on British Muslims defines Islamophobia as rooted in racism and a type of racism which targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.

CEO of The Runnymede Trust Dr. Shabna Begum said: “Islamophobia has become the normalized currency of political conversation.”

The Runnymede Trust is the UK’s leading race equality think tank and was established in 1968, notably the same year as the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

According to Dr. Begum, there is an overt belief that Muslim communities are a threat to Britain and she believes that from the benches of parliament to mainstream headlines, this sentiment no longer lurks euphemistically.

She noted that in the last year there has been a significant step-change in the normalization of Islamophobia.

Dr. Begum said: “Islamophobia has reached fever pitch in the UK and it is time that we put a rational conversation back on the agenda.”

The Home Office also observed a significant rise in religious hate crimes towards Muslims following the Israel-Hamas conflict with 3,866 offences reported in the last year, an increase of 13% from the previous year.

The Home Office further reported that in the last year 38% of all reported religious hate crimes were targeted against Muslims.

Home secretary Yvette Cooper said: “The appalling levels of Islamophobic hate crimes outlined in [Home Office] figures are a stain on our society, and this government will work tirelessly to tackle this toxic hatred wherever it is found.”

Baitul Futuh in Morden, South London, is the largest mosque in Britain and recently received a distressing bomb hoax call.

They were very grateful for the continued support of the Metropolitan Police, but the incident underscored the need for continued vigilance, following recent events this year such as the Southport riots.

A spokesperson for the mosque said: “[We] do feel safe in London [as] we have advanced security measures. There is always room for improvement in addressing broader issues that impact [our community’s] safety and well-being. Continued engagement and understanding are vital.”

These heightened security measures include 24/7 on-site security staff, CCTV surveillance, and airport-style security for major events such as Friday prayers.

Meanwhile, a parliamentary drop-in session was held on 20 November led by the MCB, Afzal Khan MP, and Amnesty International as part of Islamophobia Awareness Month.

Many politicians from various parties were in attendance such as co-leader of the Green Party Carla Denyer, Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, and Caroline Nokes MP.

The session was constructive and highlighted the growing systemic crisis of Islamophobia in the UK – an issue that the MCB believes requires immediate and decisive action.

The MCB, the largest and most diverse representative body for the British Muslim community in the UK, have worked relentlessly to tackle Islamophobia and continue to urge the government to officially adopt the widely endorsed APPG on British Muslim’s definition of Islamophobia.

The MCB believe the group offers a crucial definition of Islamophobia which clearly recognizes this specific type of hate.

Source: South West Londoner