Gift of the Givers founder Dr Imtiaz Sooliman has hit back at allegations his organization funds terrorism.

This comes after a Jewish human rights lawyer claimed in an open letter that Gift of the Givers gave money to groups blacklisted as terrorist organizations by the US government.

Objection

Lawrence Nowosenetz, former president of the Jewish Board of Deputies, objected to the Helen Suzman Foundation’s invitation to Sooliman to deliver the Helen Suzman Memorial Lecture in two weeks.

Nowosenetz, who now lives in Tel Aviv in a letter published in the Times of Israel said Suzman was a strong supporter of Israel and claimed Sooliman’s invitation contradicted the former Federal Progressive Party lawmaker’s liberal values.

“Not so long ago, I could have joined you in celebrating this decision and this event, seeing it as a majestic humanitarian of global proportions.

“However, unpleasant information has increasingly come to my attention and I must raise it with you, which sheds a very different light on the personality of Dr. Sooliman that we all think we know,” Nowosenetz said.

The citizen has contacted the Helen Suzman Foundation for comment. This will be included in the story once received.

Nowosenetz claimed that Gift of the Givers was the second NGO founded by Sooliman, the first being the South African branch of the Muslim Brotherhood’s Al Aqsa Foundation, established in 1991 and “committed to the ‘destruction of Israel.’

He said that although Sooliman distanced himself from the Al Aqsa Foundation, he continued to donate to it and to the Union of Good, which was blacklisted by the US Treasury in 2008.

“This means that Gift of the Givers could directly or indirectly finance Hamas,” he wrote.

Nowosenetz’s attack on Gift of the Givers comes after Sooliman received the All Africa Business Leaders award as Philanthropist of the Year.

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Responsibility

Sooliman said The citizen Gift of the Givers could represent every penny received and given.

“I have only one request to make of those making these allegations: please produce irrefutable evidence of our terrorist activity. Take it to SAPS, SIU, Hawks, NPA, State Security, Dirco, Reserve Bank, Standard Bank (who are our bankers), Standard Chartered in the USA through which we carry out our foreign exchange transactions), banks in Israel through which we finance. projects in Palestine.

“Let’s get charged, then let’s announce it to the local and international media and denounce ourselves,” Sooliman said.

Support for Palestine

Sooliman added that he has never hidden his support for the Palestinians.

“Gift of the Givers fully supports, endorses and acknowledges South Africa’s further submission to the International Court of Justice on Monday 28 October against Israel.

“We call on South Africans to support humanity, justice and truth, to appear before the Cape Town High Court on Monday, October 28, between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m., to show their support, solidarity and appreciation, even if the truth needs no support. The truth spreads itself. The divine injunction is very clear. The truth has arrived and the lie has perished,” Sooliman said.

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Attack on the gift of donors

Sooliman said he “absolutely loves” what’s been written” about him.

“This clearly shows that the Zionists are collapsing, floundering in an ocean of chaos and confusion, running out of ideas and strategies.

“The world knows that Israel is a baby killer, a murderer of innocent civilians, journalists, health workers and humanitarian workers,” Sooliman said.

Sooliman said the attack on the Gift of the Givers began shortly after President Cyril Ramaphosa spoke forcefully on the Middle East conflict during his speech to the 79th session of the General Assembly of the United Nations in New York.

“Constant violence”

Ramaphosa joined calls for urgent reform of the UN Security Council, which he said had remained “largely unchanged” in the 78 years since its formation.

Citing the conflict between Israel and Hamas, which has killed more than 42,000 people, caused a humanitarian crisis and displaced all of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents, Ramaphosa said the continuing violence should “shock our humanity collective”.

“The violence to which the Palestinian people are subjected is the dark continuation of more than half a century of apartheid. We South Africans know what apartheid is like. We lived it. We suffered and died because of it. We will not remain silent in the face of apartheid perpetrated against others. Through the United Nations and the instruments it uses, we must end the suffering.

Support from BRICS countries

Last week, at the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit in Kazan, Russia, Ramaphosa said BRICS countries had given support to South Africa’s genocide trial against Israel before the International Court of Justice (ICJ). .

“All welcomed the position adopted by South Africa towards Palestine.”

Ramaphosa said the world could not afford an escalation of the regional conflict, which has raged for more than a year.

The president said he had informed the BRICS countries that within a few days, South Africa would submit its full case of genocide against Israel to the ICJ.

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SA ICJ case

South Africa submitted its case to the ICJ in late 2023, accusing Israel of failing to respect its commitments under the 1948 Genocide Convention.

In January, the ICJ determined that genocidal attacks could take place in Gaza and ordered Israel to take measures to prevent genocide against Palestinians in the region.

However, Israel refused to comply with the court order.

Defying Israel

In March, the ICJ again agreed with South Africa’s assertion that the situation in Gaza had deteriorated significantly since the initial January 26 order.

The UN’s highest court has granted South Africa’s urgent request to apply additional emergency measures against Israel, accusing it of violating existing orders and causing irreparable harm to the rights invoked by Pretoria under the 1948 Genocide Convention regarding the ongoing siege of Gaza.

In May, the ICJ ordered Israel to immediately cease its attacks in the southern Gaza town of Rafah. The ruling marked the third time this year that the 15-judge panel issued preliminary orders aimed at reducing the death toll and easing humanitarian suffering in Gaza.

Several countries, including Turkey, Nicaragua, Palestine, Spain, Mexico, Libya and Colombia, have all joined the case, which began public hearings in January.

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