Several Palestinian non-governmental organisations (NGOs) receiving millions of euros in European funding have publicly rejected EU-backed peacebuilding initiatives with Israel, prompting fresh scrutiny over whether Brussels is financing groups that oppose its own Middle East policy.
In an open letter published on July 11, more than two dozen Palestinian NGOs and coalitions claiming to represent “Palestinian civil society” denounced “People-to-People” initiatives and broader peacebuilding efforts between Israelis and Palestinians.
The signatories specifically criticised the Paris Call for the Two-State Solution, an international conference held on June 12 backed by France that sought to advance a negotiated two-state settlement.
Instead, the organisations endorsed what they described as “resistance in all its forms to occupation, apartheid and colonisation”, language critics argue amounts to an endorsement of violence rather than dialogue. The statement also rejected projects it said only “normalise the oppression of our people”.
It named the Alliance for Middle East Peace (ALLMEP), Principles 4 Peace and the Palestinian Peace Coalition, saying any conference organised with those groups or their members contributed to similar harm.
Among the signatories are several organisations that receive funding from the European Commission and EU member states, including Al-Haq, Al Mezan, the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), the Palestinian NGO Network (PNGO), MIFTAH, the Independent Commission for Human Rights (ICHR) and the Palestinian Working Woman Society for Development (PWWSD).
PNGO describes itself as a coalition of 132 organisations in the West Bank, including Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip. The list also includes groups based in Britain, Belgium, France and the United States.
According to EU transparency data cited by NGO Monitor, Al Mezan received €125,561 from the European Commission in 2025, while PCHR received €475,000 in EU funding during 2023-2024. Al-Haq is also a partner in an €8.3 million project financed by the French Development Agency between 2024 and 2028, although the amount allocated specifically to the organisation has not been disclosed.
The European Union has consistently supported a negotiated two-state solution and has invested heavily in dialogue and civil society programmes intended to foster cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians. The Paris conference, convened at the initiative of French foreign minister Jean-Noël Barrot, brought together some 250 civil society representatives from both societies alongside foreign ministers and senior officials from dozens of countries.
The Paris Call for the Two-State Solution, first signed by Israeli and Palestinian civil society representatives in Paris in June 2025, urged world leaders to pursue a permanent ceasefire, secure the release of hostages, reconstruct Gaza, restore the role of the Palestinian Authority and support grassroots peacebuilding efforts between Israelis and Palestinians.
The June 2026 initiative was intended to keep the prospect of a two-state settlement alive despite the ongoing war and was backed by France as part of its broader diplomatic efforts ahead of the G7 summit in Évian, eastern France. Israel and the United States declined to attend, with the Israeli embassy saying the meeting had nothing to do with promoting peace.
The NGOs’ statement directly rejected that approach, arguing that initiatives centred on coexistence and dialogue undermine Palestinian self-determination. It described the Paris conference as reproducing “a harmful political approach” that erases Palestinian agency.
The rejection comes as the European Commission prepares a fresh round of grants under its Peacebuilding Initiative for Israel and Palestine, with an indicative budget of €8 million and individual awards of between €400,000 and €800,000. Applications close on July 24.
The development has drawn criticism from NGO Monitor, an Israeli watchdog that examines government funding of NGOs.
“It is highly troubling that European funding flows to groups that proudly oppose any ‘normalization’ measures with Israel in blatant contravention of European policy,” NGO Monitor vice-president Olga Deutsch said.
“The signatories’ endorsement of ‘resistance in all its forms’ – a disturbing call for violence – is even more problematic.”
“European governments and the EU must immediately freeze funding to all NGOs that signed this statement and end all support for organizations that reject basic tenets of EU policy.”
NGO Monitor has also alleged that several of the signatories have links to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), an organisation designated as a terrorist group by the EU and the United States.
It notes that Al-Haq, PCHR and Al Mezan were sanctioned by the US State Department in September 2025 over their cooperation with International Criminal Court (ICC) investigations targeting Israeli officials.
Israel previously designated Al-Haq as a terrorist organisation over alleged PFLP links, accusations the organisation has consistently denied. The Israeli defence ministry made that designation in 2021, saying the group formed part of a network of organisations operating on the PFLP’s behalf.
