Jewish leaders’ warning after Vic teachers donate to Palestine charity with allegedly links to terrorist group

Jewish leaders are urging teachers to beware who they donate to, after one Australian foundation raising money for kids in Palestine was allegedly linked to a terrorist group.

Jewish leaders have condemned a group of teachers for encouraging other educators to donate money to an Australian charity that allegedly has ties to an overseas terrorist organisation.

Teachers and School Staff for Palestine asked its members “to make an optional donation” to foundation Olive Kids, on an invite to its upcoming forum to discuss “the genocide in Gaza”.

The Australian registered charity was founded in 2007 with the aim of helping Palestinian children “live free, full and safe childhoods”.

But despite it’s good intentions, one of its four partners – the Union of Health Work Committees (HWC) – has a more sinister past, as it’s allegedly affiliated with terrorist group Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).

Teachers and members of the public are being urged to do their research before donating to charities. Picture: David Crosling

A report by research institute NGO Monitor into HWC suggested some of its senior staff, founders, board members and general assembly members had ties with PFLP.

The group formed in 1967 and was responsible for a number of attacks and suicide bombings on Israeli military and civilians, as well as multiple plane hijackings.

In June 2017, PFLP wounded four Israelis in Jerusalem and carried out a bombing against Israeli civilians, murdering a 17 year old in 2019.

Due to the group’s crimes, international authorities listed it as a designated terrorist organisation in the United States, Canada and the European Union, while in Australia its subject to financial sanctions.

Prior to the Herald Sun contacting Olive Kids for comment on Wednesday morning, HWC was listed as one of its four partners on the charity’s website.

However, the charity has since replaced HWC with the name of another partner and did not respond to this masthead’s request for comment prior to publication.

Zionist Federation of Australia President Jeremy Leibler said Olive Kids had “serious questions to answer” regarding its alleged links to PFLP.

“This extreme indoctrination is offensive to all Victorians and risks the safety of Jewish students,” he said.

“The idea that (the Teachers for Palestine forum) is soliciting funds for that organisation speaks to the real agenda of the organisers.”

Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-CEO Alex Ryvchin says not all charities supporting Palestine are trustworthy. Picture: Luis Enrique Ascui

Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-CEO Alex Ryvchin said there were many charities supporting children orphaned in the Hamas attacks, but not all were trustworthy.

“There are dubious organisations that partner with fronts for terror organisations and actively deepen the conflict,” he said.

“Teachers should be wary of being manipulated and duped into sending money to suspicious groups with links to terror organisations.”

Anti-Defamation Commission chairman Dvir Abramovich added classrooms are heading in a direction where they’re no longer safe for Jewish and Israeli students.

“How does the Department of Education expect parents to send their children to a school where there may be teachers who have attended this event and may have given to a charity that has provided financial support to an NGO designated as a terrorist organisation?” he said.

While the Department of Education couldn’t comment on the charity due to it being a Commonwealth matter, a spokesman said “teachers should not use their professional position to make political statements”.

The Herald Sun contacted Teachers for Palestine for comment.