(DC Pundit) – The Biden administration has allegedly funneled an astonishing $90,000 to a Palestinian organization with suspected terrorist ties shortly before a wave of Hamas attacks on Israel, as per revelations from NGO Monitor.
This controversial funding was directed towards the Phoenix Center for Research and Field Studies, an institution affiliated with Gaza University, through two grants. The first grant, valued at $30,088, was designated for a project spanning from August 2023 to July 2024, while the second, a hefty $60,000, was intended for a project running from September 2023 to August 2024.
Disturbingly, the Phoenix Center’s website has shown the participation of senior members of Palestinian terrorist groups in various conferences and panels previously hosted by the center. These gatherings openly endorsed “armed resistance” against Israel, as reported by NGO Monitor.
The series of attacks commenced at daybreak on a fateful Saturday when Hamas unleashed a barrage of thousands of rockets upon Israel.
It is worth noting that the grant recipient is identified as the “Finiq Center for Field Studies and Researches.” NGO Monitor attributes this discrepancy in spelling to a phonetic error, with the recipient’s address coinciding with that of the Phoenix Center.
A document produced by the Phoenix Center, translated from Arabic by NGO Monitor, revealed that during a discussion held on December 13, 2022, participants concluded that the future agenda must include the reintroduction of “armed resistance” and “popular resistance” against the occupation authorities in Jerusalem and the West Bank.
The Phoenix Center characterizes itself as “an independent, non-profit Palestinian institution established within the framework of its responsibility towards Palestinian communities to meet their political, economic, and social needs,” as stated on its website.
3/ The Phoenix Center’s website lists several conferences and panels it hosted promoting terrorism, including a workshop held in a room decorated with terrorist paraphernalia.
Multiple conferences listed on its website were attended by senior members of the PIJ and PFLP. > pic.twitter.com/QFsMQCweeJ
— NGO Monitor (@NGOmonitor) September 27, 2023
Incidentally, a discussion organized by the center on September 19, 2022, featured Khader Habib, a senior member of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. This mirrored a discussion from July 2022, which also included prominent PIJ members Ahmed Al-Mudallal and Khaled Al-Batsh, in addition to senior Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine figure Mohammed Al-Ghoul, according to NGO Monitor.
Salah Abdalati, the Director of Programs at the Phoenix Center, has made public statements expressing support for “armed resistance” and terror groups. In a Facebook post dated February 24, 2023, he advocated for various forms of resistance to become ingrained in Palestinian communities, including “escalating armed resistance.”
Moreover, in an August 7, 2022 post, he controversially compared Israel to “the state which most of its citizens have become as the ISIS of this generation,” according to NGO Monitor.
He further emphasized, “There is no choice but steadfastness and resistance against the occupation, and it is a right and a duty of a nation under occupation.”
The grant allocated for the project commencing in September 2023 was intended to “develop and enhance the knowledge and skills of Palestinian USG alumni in public speaking, storytelling, and digital networking.” The program’s description also highlighted its aim to promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility.
Conversely, the other grant for the August 2023 project outlined clear, measurable objectives focused on enhancing IT skills, raising awareness of IT trends, and providing networking opportunities with IT employers in Europe and Asia for target audiences.
As of the time of reporting, the State Department had not responded to requests for comment.
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