Documentation obtained by Channel 14 reveals connections formed in 2021 between figures in Ta’al, Ahmad Tibi’s party, and members of the “‘Palestinian’ Charity Association” operating in southern Turkey. The association’s publications and those of its members include praise for terrorists who carried out deadly attacks against Israelis.
At the center of the connection is Ahmad Darawshe, a Ta’al operative who previously worked as Tibi’s advisor and chief of staff. Darawshe was placed eighth on the Joint List and was elected to the Knesset after the list won 11 seats.
According to the documentation, Darawshe traveled to Turkey as part of humanitarian activity distributing food and blankets to refugees. During the visit he was received by members of the charity association and met with senior officials affiliated with it.
One of the people who met with him is Tariq Amiri, who was presented as Fatah’s representative in southern Turkey and as someone involved in the charity association’s activities. Photos posted on social media show the two together.
Not Just Charity Work
Alongside the aid activity, accounts affiliated with the association and its members have posted content over the years praising Palestinian terrorists. Among other things, they posted praise for Udai al-Tamimi, who carried out the shooting attack at the Shuafat checkpoint and attempted another attack at the entrance to Ma’ale Adumim.
Additional posts dealt with Dalal Mughrabi, who led the terrorist cell that carried out the Coastal Road massacre in 1978 and murdered dozens of Israelis. Mughrabi has been presented for years by Fatah and Palestinian figures as a heroine and “martyr.”
Amiri himself, who according to the documentation met with Darawshe, also posted content on social media supporting the violent Palestinian struggle and expressing sympathy for terrorists.
The association’s members don’t limit themselves to online activity. In additional documentation they are seen participating in organizing anti-Israel demonstrations on Turkish streets, where chants were heard claiming “the martyrs are on their way to al-Aqsa.”
The Aid and the Connection to Ta’al
The connection with Ta’al figures was formed as part of an aid operation from 2021. In materials published at that time, Darawshe’s activity was presented alongside the association’s members, including meetings and joint photographs.
However, the documentation provided does not prove that the funds or equipment used for aid were transferred to terrorist activity. It also does not indicate a connection between the 2021 activity and the suspicions currently being investigated regarding foreign interference in the recent elections.
The publication takes on additional significance in light of the “ballot box terror” affair and the concerns being examined about attempts by foreign elements to influence voting in Arab society. The exposed connection is not a proven part of those investigations, but it illustrates the relationships that figures in the Arab parties maintain with organizations and activists outside Israel.
Darawshe, who at the time of the activity was Tibi’s representative, is set to be sworn in as a Knesset member in the coming days. He will enter the parliament as Ta’al’s representative within the Joint List.
Ta’al party response: “Darawshe supervised humanitarian aid, food and blankets, to Syrian refugees in Turkey, and we are proud of him. The Israeli government, on the other hand, supplied ammunition to factions in Syria to escalate the civil war.”