Israel: Two dangerous bills risk criminalising and preventing Israeli human rights defenders from operating
Front Line Defenders strongly condemns the alarming targeting of local human rights organisations by the re-emergence of two legislative proposals that passed a preliminary reading in the Knesset on 16 February 2025. This is the first step in a four-stage legislative process that must be prevented from advancing any further. If enacted, the two proposed bills would represent a grave escalation in the Israeli government’s relentless campaign to silence dissent, obstruct the work of Israeli human rights defenders, and dismantle civil society, against the backdrop of Israeli’s genocide in Gaza and serious human rights violations in the West Bank.
The first bill No. P/5222/25, that Israeli organisations refer to as the ‘NGO Taxation law’ is a proposed Amendment to the Associations Law (Foreign State Entity Donation), 2024.
The bill introduces two dangerous provisions: an 80% tax on donations from foreign states to NGOs and a prohibition on courts to consider petitions submitted by these organisations, effectively stripping them of their ability to legally challenge government actions in court. While the bill exempts public institutions funded by the state, it also allows the Knesset Finance Committee to grant selective exemptions to reward groups aligned with government agendas while punishing those advocating for human rights and democratic accountability.
If enacted, the bill would push Israeli civil society organisations reliant on international funding to the brink of financial collapse. It is a deliberate attempt to strangle human rights organisations by draining their resources to curtail accountability and their work to defend human rights. The bill’s impact would extend beyond organisations defending Palestinian rights to also undermine broader human rights initiatives such as environmental and LGBTIQ+ rights.
This draft bill continues a worrying global trend of restrictive legislation that uses the spectre of “foreign interference” to unduly restrict the activities of human rights defenders and challenge the financial viability of their legitimate human rights work, in contravention of international standards, including Article 13 of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders
The second bill, identified as the ‘ICC law’, is a proposed law to criminalise any cooperation with the International Criminal Court (ICC). This legislation comes amid a context where Israel has tried to challenge the Court’s jurisdiction with regard to arrest warrants issued for senior Israeli officials charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity. The bill imposes prison sentences of up to five years on any unauthorised information sharing with the ICC. If the information was classified, the culprit is liable to life imprisonment.
This law does not only criminalise active assistance with the ICC, but also any language that suggests that the government or senior Israeli officials are committing crimes recognised under the Rome Statute. Under this law, all Israeli human rights organisations that are reporting, researching and publishing serious human rights violations against Palestinian civilians could be punished and sentenced to at least five years in prison. This legislation would compound the severe harassment already faced by many of these organisations because of their human rights work.
The purpose of this bill is to obstruct the work of the ICC, and thus protect Israeli political leaders and military personnel from arrest warrants over alleged war crimes in Gaza. This will have the effect of shielding Israeli authorities from accountability and cracking down on human rights defenders seeking justice.
These measures are part of a broader trend of undermining the ability of Israeli and Palestinian human rights defenders and NGOs to carry out their legitimate and crucial work. Over the last 15 years, Israeli authorities have resorted to smear campaigns, intimidation and harassment measures, restrictive pieces of legislation and increased pressure on international donors to reduce the funding for organisations that expose human rights violations. If these new bills are enacted, Israeli civil society will face a dire reality – where defending human rights is heavily taxed, criminalised and punished with imprisonment.
Front Line Defenders strongly condemns these legislative attacks and calls on Israeli authorities to immediately halt this assault on human rights defenders, civil society organisations, and democratic accountability. Human rights defenders must not be targeted for engaging with international bodies and mechanisms, including the International Criminal Court.
Front Line Defenders also expresses its deep concern that these bills add to a global trend of restrictive legislation focusing on “foreign interference”. The international community must take urgent action to oppose these repressive measures and protect human right defenders working to uphold human rights, the rule of law and accountability. The draft laws should be withdrawn to be brought in line with relevant international human rights standards, including the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders. As they are currently written, they contribute to a worsening pattern of restrictions against human rights defenders in Israel, raising concerns about continuing democratic backsliding and the closure of civic space.
