ZOA: Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations letter urges U.S. Department of Justice to investigate fundraising by Viva Palestina at UC Irvine

Courtesy of the ZOA:

ZOA Praises Presidents’ Conference For Urging Justice Dept. to Investigate Alleged Fundraising for Terrorist Group Hamas at UC Irvine’s Muslim Student Event

The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) praises the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations for urging the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate the solicitation of funds for a group called Viva Palestina at a Muslim Student Union event at the University of California, Irvine on May 21, 2009, and whether those funds were provided to the terrorist group Hamas.  In a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr., Alan P. Solow and Malcolm Hoenlein – the Chairman and Executive Vice Chairman, respectively, of the Presidents’ Conference – said, “We strongly support an investigation by the Department of Justice into whether funds solicited were provided to Hamas, which has been designated by the Department of State as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.  Federal law prohibits furnishing material support or resources to U.S.-designated terrorist groups like Hamas.”

On May 21, 2009, a registered student group at UC Irvine called the Muslim Student Union featured extremist British politician and Israel-basher George Galloway, who spoke about his group called Viva Palestina and the convoys of supply-filled vehicles that the group was bringing into Gaza.  This program was part of the annual Israel-bashing event that the Muslim Student Union sponsors on campus, this one entitled “Israel: The Politics of Genocide.”

There is evidence that at the event, funds were solicited from the audience for Viva Palestina.  There is additional evidence – including a 31-page report about Viva Palestina prepared by terrorism experts at Steve Emerson’s Investigative Project on Terrorism – that Viva Palestina’s goal is not charitable but to provide support to Hamas.  In fact, during the March 2009 Viva Palestina convoy to Gaza, Galloway stated, “This is not charity.  This is politics.”