Front Burner (CBC): "How Canadian charities fund illegal West Bank settlements"

Date: October 28, 2025
Host: Jamie Poisson
Guest: Ioana Ramiliodis (co-host, The Fifth Estate)

Main Theme

This episode explores an in-depth investigation by CBC’s The Fifth Estate, revealing how Canadian-registered charities are facilitating financial support for Israeli settlements in the West Bank—settlements considered illegal under international law and opposed by Canadian government policy. The episode weaves together on-the-ground accounts from Palestinians affected by settlement expansion and violence, as well as a detailed look into how charitable donations from Canada bypass oversight and potentially violate the spirit, if not the letter, of Canadian law.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Context: The West Bank & Settlement Expansion

• The ongoing Israeli occupation and continued settlement expansion in the West Bank are central to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
• The Canadian government officially recognizes the settlements as illegal and a "barrier to peace" but, as the investigation reveals, Canadian charities are sending money to organizations that support these settlements, sometimes even issuing tax receipts for these donations.

2. Field Reporting: Impact on Palestinian Communities

• Location Focus: The investigation centers on the village of Susya (Khirbet Susya), Massafir Yatta (a cluster of farming communities), and the city of Yatta in the South Hebron Hills—regarded as highly volatile due to increased settler violence.
• Displacement & Violence: Palestinian families, who have lived in Susya for generations, describe being pushed off their ancestral lands, having their homes bulldozed, and living under constant threat. Violence against Palestinians, including attacks and killings, is detailed.
  • Notable Example: The shooting and killing of Auda Hathelin by an Israeli settler known for prior attacks, who had been sanctioned by Canada, the EU, and previously the U.S. (06:10).
• Everyday Hardship: Palestinians in “makeshift” villages lack access to water or electricity, with even basic needs being weaponized.
  • Quote:

    "If you see this valley, this. Our olive trees, and even now, our olive trees in very bad situation because no rain, we not have any water. We buy water for drink and if you in the place. Non water, even the pipe of the water... settlers and the army use this pipe. And we not have any water, just we buy water."
    — Nasser Nawaja (07:50)

3. Settler Violence: Frequency & Personal Accounts

• Hospital Visits: Journalists visited Nasser Nawaja’s relatives in hospital after a violent attack by settlers with rods and rocks. Doctor at Yatta hospital stated:
  • Quote:

    "Oh, if not daily, definitely three, four times a week."
    (on treating settler violence injuries) (11:22)

4. The Canadian Connection: Charitable Funding Flows

• Mount Hebron Fund: The main conduit supporting local settlements, on Canadian and international sanctions lists for facilitating settler violence.
  • CBC’s team tested the donation process, discovered the promise of Canadian tax receipts through a charity named Mizrahi Canada (13:41). After being contacted, the organizations claimed it was an error and stopped accepting CAD donations, but continued in other currencies.
• Mizrahi Organization of Canada: Under scrutiny after years of not disclosing donations to Israel; filings now show millions directed to settlement-related projects (14:34). Activists argue that any support for settlements normalizes and legitimizes encroachment and related violence.
• Legality Issues:
  • Providing funds to sanctioned entities is a clear legal violation; direct funding of illegal settlements is murkier but runs counter to public policy. The CRA has history of disallowing charities supporting settlements or foreign militaries.
  • Quote:

    "Charities are supposed to align to public policy, not run counter to it."
    — Ioana Ramiliodis (15:33)

5. Tax Receipts & Public Impact

• Donors receive Canadian tax receipts, meaning millions of dollars deducted from public coffers (16:59). Activists emphasize that this funding could otherwise benefit recognized charitable causes in Canada.

6. Other Charities: Military and Settlement Support

• Jewish National Fund (JNF) Canada: CRA revoked their charitable status for lack of oversight and projects in occupied territories. Still accepting donations through a new charity, Friends of JNF Canada (19:24).
  • JNF funded Canada Park, built over lands of three displaced Palestinian villages—now under criminal complaint as a possible war crime (20:38).
• Hessig Foundation & Canadian Zionist Cultural Association: Both support Israeli military or ex-soldiers; activists argue that any aid to army personnel violates the spirit of the rules against funding foreign armies (22:19).

7. Scale & Oversight

• Exact amounts are unclear, but millions flow annually. In recent years, some charities have lost status over lack of transparency (24:18).
• CRA and Government Response:
  • CRA and the Finance Minister declined interviews; Minister stated that all charities must follow well-established rules, but gave no clear answer on enforcement (26:21).

8. Charity Accountability & Transparency

• Charities involved generally refused interviews. Journalists attempted contact via calls, emails, and attending fundraising events—all unsuccessful (27:06).
• Regevim: A controversial group receiving Canadian funds, dedicated to contesting the presence of Palestinian structures and advocating for their demolition. Co-founded by a Canadian-sanctioned ultranationalist minister.
  • Quote:

    "[Regavim] frames... Palestinian communities there as the ones who are the ones who do not belong there."
    — Ioana Ramiliodis (28:24)

9. Views from Israelis

• In Tel Aviv, the team found many Israelis, including anti-war protesters and former soldiers, denounce West Bank violence and fear that expanding settlements undermine peace prospects (30:04).
• Former PM Ehud Olmert:
  • A past supporter of settlements turned advocate for the two-state solution, Olmert is now a vocal critic of settlement expansion.
    • Quote:

      "Settlements are the main obstacle towards a possible political solution... The more and more and more settlements will just ruin the chance of building [a] Palestinian state."
      — Ehud Olmert (32:10)

10. The Latest on the Nawaja Family

• The injured Nawajas have recovered and returned home, but no charges have been laid in their case. The family remains under constant threat of violence and home demolition (32:51).
  • Quote:

    “They say that it makes them more resolute in their decisions to stay. But again, it's a question of how long, because it is a very difficult place to live in with that threat, not only of the threat of violence, but in their case as well, the threat of demolition of their homes.”
    — Ioana Ramiliodis (33:42)

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• On systemic hardship:

  "We not have any water, just we buy water."
  — Nasser Nawaja (07:50)

• On the normalization of violence:

  "If not daily, definitely three, four times a week."
  — Doctor at Yatta hospital, on settler violence cases (11:22)

• On charity and policy contradiction:

  "Charities are supposed to align to public policy, not run counter to it."
  — Ioana Ramiliodis (15:33)

• On settlement as a barrier to peace:

  "Settlements are the main obstacle towards a possible political solution of the conflict between us and the Palestinians..."
  — Ehud Olmert (32:10)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:20] – Introduction to Susya and overview of Palestinian communities in the South Hebron Hills
• [04:34] – Personal accounts of settler violence and land displacement
• [06:10] – Death of Auda Hathelin and profile of sanctioned settler violence
• [07:50] – Nasser Nawaja on day-to-day life without water access
• [11:22] – Hospital doctor discusses the frequency of settler violence injuries
• [12:40] – Investigation into the Mount Hebron Fund and Canadian donations
• [14:34] – Mizrahi Canada’s links to settlements and activism around disclosure
• [19:24] – Revocation of JNF Canada’s status and creation of Friends of JNF Canada
• [20:38] – History of Canada Park and associated legal complaint
• [22:19] – Criticism of military support through Canadian charities
• [24:18] – Scale of donations and recent CRA actions
• [26:21] – Finance Minister’s response to questions about oversight
• [28:24] – Regavim’s activities and ideology
• [30:04] – Israeli public opinions about settlements and peace process
• [32:10] – Ehud Olmert on the impact of settlements
• [32:51] – Update on the Nawaja family’s situation

Memorable Moments

• The experiment (13:41) in which the CBC team donates to a sanctioned Israeli entity and automatically receives a promise for a Canadian tax receipt—a telling exposure of loopholes in oversight.
• Emotional hospital scenes (09:23–11:13) after settler attacks, conveying the routine nature of violence for Palestinians in affected areas.

Episode Tone & Style

The episode maintains a factual, investigative tone, blending on-the-ground accounts with systemic, policy-focused analysis. Personal stories of suffering intertwine with discussions about bureaucracy, law, and accountability, giving urgency to esoteric legal debates about charity rules. There is also a clear effort by both host and guest to ground the discussion in concrete experiences while pressing officials for meaningful comment.

Conclusion

This in-depth episode lays bare the contradiction between Canada’s stated foreign policy goals and the reality of millions of tax-deductible dollars supporting controversial, and often illegal, settlement activities in the West Bank. It highlights gaps in Canadian charity law enforcement, the impact on Palestinian lives, and the tangled politics between charitable intent and real-world consequences on the ground.