A call to US lawmakers: Keep following the money – opinion

Despite anti-Israel protests at American universities no longer making headlines, it is time to investigate the financial backing of these hate groups.

 Pro-Palestinian demonstrators attend a protest, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, May 18, 2024.  (photo credit: REUTERS/EDUARDO MUNOZ)
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators attend a protest, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, May 18, 2024.
(photo credit: REUTERS/EDUARDO MUNOZ)

Although anti-Israel protestors at American universities no longer make headlines, now is the time to investigate the financial underpinnings of the groups that organized these hateful encampments. The college students, praised by Iran’s Ayatollah Khamenei as “a branch of the Resistance Front,” were financed and directed by groups such as Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), American Muslims for Palestine (AMP), and Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP). 

Each of these organizations has been linked to US-designated terrorist groups. The assault on the Jewish State and American democracy that erupted at last spring’s university encampments must not be forgotten, and therefore, American lawmakers need to follow the money to uncover the truth about these groups. 

Protestors supporting Palestinians in Gaza gather at an encampment at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), as the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas continues, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., May 1, 2024. (Credit: REUTERS/MIKE BLAKE)Enlrage image
Protestors supporting Palestinians in Gaza gather at an encampment at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), as the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas continues, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., May 1, 2024. (Credit: REUTERS/MIKE BLAKE)

The US government has tools at both the federal and state levels to uncover financial connections between domestic nonprofits and extremist organizations. While due process must always be followed when investigating potential terrorist ties to American civil society organizations, government officials must hold these organizations accountable.

On January 14, 2025, Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares rightfully intensified legal efforts against AMP by filing a motion to compel the production of the organization’s financial records following allegations that AMP has funneled charitable donations to Hamas.  As early as 2016, terrorism finance expert Jonathan Schanzer testified before Congress that AMP was created by individuals “who previously worked for nonprofits that were shuttered by federal authorities or sued in civil court because they provided financial or material support for Hamas.”

A day after the Virginia AMP motion was filed, the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia held JVP accountable when the anti-Zionist group, which has been linked to Lebanon according to a recent report by StandWithUs, agreed to pay a penalty of $677,634 to the US government after an investigation found that JVP misrepresented its activities to secure taxpayer dollars from COVID relief programs. The federal government ensured that JVP could not claim to be a non-lobbying organization when its sole purpose is to advocate against the existence of the State of Israel.

NSJP’s Fiscal Sponsor: We are Nearing Shut Down

Last week, WESPAC, National SJP’s fiscal sponsor, sent out an urgent request to supporters asking for money to fend off lawsuits, emphasizing that the organization was on the “precipice” of survival because “well-funded forces of darkness are now waging legal warfare against us.” WESPAC, which allows groups linked to terrorism, such as SJP, to hide their funds, has been sued by individuals and class-action plaintiffs in US courts. SJP has openly supported Hamas and Hezbollah and praised terrorists as “martyrs.” Columbia SJP even glorified the October 7 terrorist attacks by calling it a “strategic and anti-imperialist act of resistance.”

The US Department of the Treasury has highlighted concerns about terrorist organizations exploiting charities to raise and transfer funds, provide logistical support, and help recruit terrorists. In 2024, Congress proposed HR 9495 to enhance oversight of nonprofit organizations by the Treasury. The proposed bill, known as the “Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act,” aimed to revoke the tax-exempt status of US nonprofits found to be materially supporting designated terrorist groups.

The House of Representatives passed the bill to give the Treasury Department enhanced investigative authority, but the legislation faced a smear campaign and was never taken up in the Senate. SJP, AMP, and JVP—who would likely be targeted under the bill —misrepresented it as an attack on American civil society and, in their aggressive campaign to quash it, claimed it threatened all nonprofits with whom President-elect Trump might politically disagree. In reality, the legislation included robust procedural safeguards to ensure the integrity of any investigation.

As the new Congress takes shape, lawmakers should move forward with legislation that gives federal authorities the tools necessary to investigate alleged terror-supporting organizations to strengthen national security. While legislation must balance preventing terrorism with protecting civil liberties, it can achieve this by ensuring that enforcement measures are targeted, evidence-based, and include comprehensive safeguards against abuse. In doing so, Congress will help ensure that taxpayer dollars and charitable donations are not financing extremism. 

The recent legal actions against AMP and JVP and the desperate call for legal support funds by WESPAC/NSJP should serve as examples for legislators and attorneys general to insist upon universal compliance with investigations into potential misuse of charitable funds. Where organizations fail to comply with court orders, lawmakers must not retreat. Such intransigence must be met with lawful investigative tools.


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We cannot afford to wait until the Ayatollah relays the need to reestablish encampments on American universities’ manicured yards to “his students.” The time to follow the money is now.

Julie Marzouk is an attorney, activist, and founding board member of Intelligent Advocacy Network. 

This op-ed is published in partnership with a coalition of organizations that fight antisemitism across the world. Read the previous article by Adam Milstein.