Israeli authorities arrest senior HWC officials amid terror, foreign influence threats

Israeli authorities have arrested senior officials from the Health Work Committees (HWC), designated by Israel as a terrorist group in 2020 due to alleged ties with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). This action coincides with reports from Channel 12 that the Shin Bet recently thwarted multiple alleged terror plots targeting Israeli leadership and dismantled foreign-run social media operations aimed at influencing public opinion, including a Telegram channel called Bnei Eretz. NGO Monitor's Prof. Gerald M. Steinberg stated, "This is yet another example of how terror groups like the PFLP repeatedly exploit the NGO facade," calling on donor states to cease funding HWC due to its leaders' ongoing PFLP ties. Several HWC officials have been convicted of terror-related offenses, yet the group continues to operate in the West Bank, reportedly receiving European support.