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Berlin– Lobbies supporting Israel operate strongly in European countries, including: GermanyIt exploits the latter’s historical specificity and its responsibility for Nazi crimes against the Jews, to gain more positions of support and support from Berlin for the benefit of Israel.
If these groups in the United States rely mainly on money and the network of relationships with Democrats and Republicans, in Germany they rely on the historical fact that shackles German policy and is a fundamental factor in turning “Israel’s security” into a “supreme national interest” in Germany.
Public records confirm the existence of lobbyists supporting Israel. But these records do not include everyone, especially since pressure groups supporting Israel are not necessarily registered associations, but rather they may be religious bodies.
Central Council of Jews
It is the largest body representing Jews in Germany, but instead of focusing on the situation of the Jewish community in the country and defending its issues, or defending the Jewish religion in itself, this body takes positions in Germany’s foreign policy.
The Council clearly declares its absolute support for Israel as a “Jewish state,” which makes a number of Jews inside Germany, especially the left, refuse to represent them, especially since half of Germany’s Jews are not registered within the Jewish community that the Council is supposed to represent.
According to the council’s website, it “stands against any form of demonization, delegitimization, and the application of double standards toward the only Jewish state.” The Clube Council is not recognized in Germany, as it is a public law institutionNot an NGO, But his benefit from the symbolism of representing the Jews makes him influential in the political field.
The Council’s support for Israel amounts to collecting donations for the Israeli army, as happened in the current aggression against Gaza stripAlthough this money is used in hostilities, he also called on the federal government to immediately stop all forms of financial support directed to the Palestinians in the wake of the Islamic Resistance Movement’s attack (agitation), although a large portion of this support is directed exclusively to humanitarian affairs.
The Council exerts pressure on the parties, and has previously accused members of the Left Party of anti-Semitism for their positions critical of Israel. Pressure is also reaching non-governmental organizations, and the Council recently called on the branch of the “Friday for Climate” movement in Germany to distance itself from the international movement after the latter’s solidarity with Gaza.
Intellectuals critical of Israel, even if they are Jews, are also in the Council’s crosshairs, including the American philosopher Judith Butler, as well as football players, such as the Moroccan Nassir Mazraoui because of his wish for victory for the Palestinians. In addition to the media, such as “Der Spiegel” magazine, which the Council accused of “using anti-Semitic clichés” in response to an investigation that revealed how two organizations supporting Israel – which will be mentioned later in this report – used their influence in the German Parliament.
The Council also enjoys great support from the German authorities, and coordinates with the government at the highest level. The German Parliament recently agreed to increase the support allocated to it from 13 million euros to 22 million, noting that the amount was around 10 million before 2018.
Values Initiative Association (WerteInitiative)
It was founded in 2018, by Elio Adler, a dentist. The association says that its main goal is to express German-Jewish positions, and that it is a Jewish organization that wants to ensure a Jewish future in Germany, but most of its work focuses on supporting Israeli trends.
Der Spiegel’s investigation revealed that the association launched a campaign to classify the boycott of Israel movement as “BDS“(BDS) is anti-Semitic. The magazine says that 103 out of 700 parliamentarians disagreed with this decision, given that it would affect cooperation with Palestinian organizations, but they could not stand against it so as not to be accused of anti-Semitism.
This organization is working to find donors for a number of German party figures, and the goal is for them to express positions consistent with the Israeli narrative, as well as to publish demands for further restrictions on the Palestinians.
In its data published in the lobby registry, the association does not provide detailed information about the nature of its financial activities, but it confirms that it received income exceeding 877 thousand euros in 2022, and most of the support comes from the German Ministry of the Interior.
🇮🇱❤️ Our hearts are with the people of Israel 💔#AmIsraelChai! pic.twitter.com/3EQtxywpS3
— Values Initiative. Jewish-German positions (@WerteInitiative) October 7, 2023
Middle East Peace Forum (Naffo)
An organization that defines itself as “a gathering of German citizens committed to peaceful political and social development in the Middle East,” and therefore “engages in a regular, future-oriented dialogue with political decision-makers in Germany.” She explains that she calls for “Israel’s inviolable right to exist.”
This organization meets continuously with representatives of the major German parties, all of which are supportive of Israel, and tries to persuade them to make visits to Israel. It also meets with officials from the Israeli embassy, and in its meetings it focuses on repeating the Israeli narrative despite its claim that it believes in the two-state solution. It was mentioned in the aforementioned “Der Spiegel” investigation.
The “Middle East Peace” organization is officially registered in the database of licensed lobbies within the German Parliament, and its budget in 2020 amounted to about 269 thousand euros, most of it from member subscriptions and donations, but there are expectations that the budget will be larger due to the nature of its activities.
It was founded in 2009, but its activities are largely absent from the media, as it focused its work on a lot of secrecy, especially holding meetings with German politicians, which is confirmed by its CEO, Maryam Rosenstein, in a previous interview. On its executive board, there was also Elio Adler, who founded the Values Initiative association before his withdrawal.
German-Israeli Association (DIG)
The biggest difference between it and the previous two associations is that it works a lot in public. It clearly declares its defense of Israel and Zionism. She recently ran a fundraising campaign for Israel, claiming that there is a war against it. It also supports Israel’s foreign orientations, and also has a youth forum that is active in several universities.
The association is considered one of the oldest lobbies in Germany, as it was founded in 1966, and it receives significant support from the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs, reaching 550 thousand euros in 2022. It does not reveal in the lobby register its financial budget, but it is expected that the revenues will be greater, given that it includes… At least 5 thousand members.
Its president, Volker Beck, is a frequent guest on German channels and constantly calls for participation in pro-Israel demonstrations. He is very active on social media, and belongs to Green Party Those interested in the environment, noting that a number of environmental parties in Europe defend the Palestinians.
Beck puts pressure on members within the Green Party to prevent them from taking positions critical of Israel, and focuses his campaigns on Islamic organizations. He recently demanded that the state require every Islamic association wishing to partner with it to recognize “Israel’s right to exist and its security.” His association also exerts pressure. Great for the parties supporting the Palestinians.
Tikvah Institute
The word “Tikvah” is Hebrew and means hope. This organization was founded in 2020, and its role is still modest, but it is also headed by Volker Beck, who already heads the German-Israeli Association. According to its position, this organization works to confront anti-Semitism, including what relates to Israel, as it wants to “strengthen a friendly relationship between Israel – the Jewish state – and Germany.”
The organization works to publish research and studies as well as “promote legislative proposals.” One of its projects is to analyze media coverage related to Israel, and therefore it publicly criticizes the German media if its coverage does not meet its standards. The organization received support from at least 3 German entities in 2022, the largest of which was from the Ministry of the Interior for approximately 300 thousand euros.
