JustGiving backs down on withheld funds for IDF ‘militia’ phone chargers

A pair of friends successfully raised over GBP £20,000 (Approximately NIS 92,000) to purchase portable chargers for IDF soldiers so that they could reassure and contact their loved ones amid rising safety concerns related to the Israel-Hamas war. However, the site used by the pair had initially refused to pay out the funds, claiming that there were risks the funds would violate the site’s policy on to “support a militia” and pay for “military activity,” according to the legal group UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI). 

UKLFI successfully secured the funds from JustGiving after extensive communications with JustGiving’s Senior Vice President and General Counsel, JustGiving’s executives and the parent company Blackbaud Inc. The series of meetings eventually led to the release of the funds and the company's acknowledgement they had been wrong to withhold them, UKLFI said. This acknowledgement came after communications to the contrary.

A spokesperson from JustGiving said: “As a regulated business, we have very careful vetting processes in place to ensure all crowdfunding pages are legitimate and adhere to our community guidelines. On this occasion, we’re sorry that our vetting processes took longer than usual, but we’re pleased to have reached a suitable outcome.”

Why were the funds withheld?

JustGiving’s Senior Vice President and General Counsel initially told UKLFI, “Our terms and guidelines do not permit campaigns that seek to fund militias or the procurement of weapons. Upon our review of your campaign, we have determined that the risk of these funds being used to support a militia is apparent.”

UKLFI outlined in the letter, seen by the Jerusalem Post,  that the friend’s intended to “set up a Just Giving page on 8 October 2023 to raise funds to help soldiers keep in touch with their families. Rockets are raining down on Israeli cities, targeting civilians, so soldiers are of course worried about their families, and conversely the families are worried about the soldiers on the battlefield in and around Gaza. The idea was to buy and deliver mobile phone power banks and portable batteries for the soldiers to recharge their phones, so they could stay in touch.”

The successful fundraiser had been in the top 1% of campaigns for JustGiving in that month, with 147 donors gifting generously from across the globe. 

Changing the rules

At the time the fundraisers tried to withdraw the funds, JustGiving’s guidelines stated that it did not permit campaigns that seek to “fund terrorism, rebel groups, militias or gangs” or funds that may go towards the “procurement of weapons.” The guidelines were later adapted its policy to say it would remove “pages that promote or seek to support any military organisation.”

UKLFI argued, in acknowledgement of the time the policy was updated,  that the change amounted to discrimination under the Equality Act. This argument was made under the belief that to apply this policy to an Israeli campaign, while the policy had not been applied to numerous fundraisers for Ukrainian soldiers, was discriminatory. 

UKLFI added that the change in terms appeared to be an attempt to “manufacture evidence in order to support their desire to discriminate against the campaign based on clear anti-Israel bias.”

Caroline Turner, a director at UKLFI, said: “It is absolutely outrageous and deeply worrying that senior executives at JustGiving maintained that the IDF is a militia and blocked the release of the funds.

“The IDF is a sovereign military army, fighting a war against the terrorist group Hamas. Soldiers take huge precautions while operating in extremely difficult circumstances. It is not only incorrect but also an insulting slur to call the IDF a militia.

“This is typical of the kind of discrimination that Israelis and Israeli causes experience on a daily basis. I am glad JustGiving eventually released the funds, following our interventions.”

Increased pro-terror activities in Britain

Explaining the increase in workload since October 7, Turner told the Post, "UKLFI has been overwhelmed with people coming to us for assistance since the start of the Gaza War on 7 October 2023.  We have had more than six times the usual workload – People are reporting to us cases of pro-terror activity, amongst many professionals such as doctors, dentists and academics. We have been reporting them to the police and to their professional bodies.  

"There has also been a huge increase in antisemitism in the workplace, and people have been coming to us for help.  We have also dealt with anti-Israel activity by businesses such as cafes, and outlets selling pro-terror merchandise.    We are grateful to the dozens of volunteer lawyers who are helping us deal with these cases.”