An international network of activist organizations is coordinating hundreds of protests marking the anniversary of Israel’s founding, with critics warning the campaign promotes anti-Israel and antisemitic rhetoric under the banner of political activism.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
A broad coalition of anti-Israel activist groups is organizing coordinated “Nakba 78” demonstrations across dozens of countries this weekend, mobilizing hundreds of events tied to the anniversary of Israel’s founding and the Palestinian displacement narrative associated with 1948.
According to a Fox News Digital investigation, approximately 425 organizations are participating in the campaign, including socialist organizations, Muslim advocacy groups, student activist movements, and anti-Israel coalitions operating across the United States, Europe, Canada, and Australia.
Event listings published on a global protest coordination website identified roughly 736 demonstrations scheduled in 39 countries, including protests in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, London, Sydney, and other major cities.
Organizers describe the protests as commemorations of the “Nakba,” the Arabic term meaning “catastrophe,” which Palestinians use to refer to Israel’s founding on May 14, 1948, and the resulting displacement of Palestinians during the Arab-Israeli war.
Critics of the movement argue the protests go beyond criticism of Israeli policy and instead challenge the legitimacy of Israel’s existence as a Jewish state.
Dalia Ziada, a Middle East scholar and Washington-based coordinator at the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy, told Fox News Digital the movement reflects “a sinful marriage between the radical left and radical Islamism, the groups that hate Western liberal democracies and desire to destroy them.”
The investigation reported that the organizations involved collectively control an estimated $1 billion in annual revenues and maintain interconnected organizing structures spanning nonprofits, advocacy groups, campus movements, and political coalitions.
Among the organizations identified were the People’s Forum, the Party for Socialism and Liberation, the Palestinian Youth Movement, CodePink, Students for Justice in Palestine, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, American Muslims for Palestine, and chapters of the Democratic Socialists of America.
In New York City, activists affiliated with the People’s Forum organized sign-making events ahead of demonstrations focused on what organizers describe as the “ongoing Nakba.”
The report stated that the People’s Forum has received support from Marxist businessman Neville Roy Singham, who has reportedly directed hundreds of millions of dollars into networks connected to anti-Israel activism and organizations accused of promoting Chinese Communist Party messaging.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., told Fox News Digital she believes foreign adversaries are using nonprofit structures inside the United States to create political instability.
“One of the things we know about the Singham group and about the Chinese Communist Party is they are going to look for a fellow bad actor… and they’re going to try to partner with them in causing chaos in our cities,” Blackburn said.
“There is no limit to what the Chinese Communist Party will do to create chaos in the United States,” she added.
The report stated that congressional committees and federal agencies are examining the funding structures and activities of several organizations tied to the network, including possible violations involving foreign influence disclosure requirements.
Fox News Digital reported that its review of protest literature, graphics, coalition statements, and social media content found many organizers framing Israel as a “settler-colonial” or “genocidal” state while describing the United States as “imperialist” and “fascist.”
The investigation also stated that some materials avoided using the word “Israel” altogether, instead referring to the country as a “Zionist entity” or “Zionist project.”
Under the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism, criticism of Israeli government policy is not inherently antisemitic. However, the definition states that antisemitism may include denying Jewish self-determination or asserting that Israel’s existence is inherently racist.
Organizers involved in the protests reject accusations of antisemitism, instead characterizing their activism as anti-Zionist and anti-colonial.
In New York, demonstrations are being staged as part of a “Nakba Week of Action” following confrontations earlier this week near Manhattan’s Park East Synagogue and Brooklyn’s Young Israel of Midwood synagogue.
The report identified organizations including Palestinian Youth Movement New York City, Al-Awda New York/New Jersey, and Within Our Lifetime as participants in those demonstrations.
Brooke Goldstein, executive director of The Lawfare Project, told Fox News Digital authorities should closely monitor demonstrations occurring near Jewish institutions.
“When there is assault, vandalism, trespass, obstruction, targeted harassment, discriminatory denial of access, or coordinated conduct that creates a hostile environment in schools, workplaces, or federally-funded institutions, this is action. Not protected speech,” Goldstein said.
She also stated that Jewish institutions are increasingly being treated “as proxies for the Israeli government.”
Additional demonstrations are scheduled outside Israeli diplomatic facilities in Los Angeles and Boston.
In Los Angeles, organizers announced plans to gather outside the Israeli Consulate on Wilshire Boulevard, which protest materials reportedly refer to as the “Zionist Consulate.”
In Boston, organizers including Students for Justice in Palestine and the Party for Socialism and Liberation participated in a teach-in event examining U.S. policy in the Middle East before organizing additional demonstrations.
Internationally, London authorities are preparing for a large “Nakba 78” march expected to move through central areas of the city amid concerns regarding public disorder and hate speech.
In Sydney, demonstrators are expected to gather at Town Hall as part of nationwide protests supporting Palestinians and opposing Israeli military actions in Gaza.
Fox News Digital reported that the movement increasingly links Israel’s founding, U.S. support for Israel, and regional conflicts involving Gaza, Iran, Lebanon, Yemen, and Iraq into a broader narrative centered on anti-Western resistance.
Ziada told the outlet the alliance between radical left-wing groups and Islamist activists accelerated following the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attacks on Israel.
“They all agree on one thing, which is destroying the United States or weakening the western world,” Ziada said.
Promotional materials circulating online ahead of the demonstrations included slogans such as “Resistance Since 1948” and “The harder they attack, the stronger we fight back.”
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