A wave of lawsuits filed by Israeli plaintiffs against pro-Palestinian American citizens, advocacy groups, and media outlets is paving the way for the AIPAC-backed “nonprofit killer bill” to take effect. The claims—largely unsubstantiated—appear designed to justify what critics say could amount to a near-total shutdown of political expression around the Israeli-Palestinian issue.

On Monday, the latest in a series of legal actions targeted the prominent New York-based activist group Within Our Lifetime, as well as the Columbia University chapters of Jewish Voice for Peace and Students for Justice in Palestine. According to plaintiff Shlomi Ziv, the groups were allegedly funded by Hamas.

Ziv, who was previously held captive in Gaza and worked as a security guard on October 7, 2023, claims that his captors told him they were financing student groups at Columbia. The accusation is based entirely on hearsay. Still, the lawsuit’s intent appears clearly aimed at dismantling the student movement at Columbia.

The complaint even names Mahmoud Khalil, a U.S. permanent resident and pro-Palestine activist now in detention, who is facing deportation under an order from Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Khalil’s alleged offense: exercising his First Amendment rights. Despite pro-Israel organizations accusing him of supporting Hamas, the most the Canary Mission—a group notorious for doxxing and smearing college students—could produce was a video showing Khalil standing near someone chanting, “From the river to the sea.”

The attacks on free speech and academic freedom at Columbia are not confined to deporting (or expelling) students who protest Israel. That’s a small part of it.

The administration is also demanding Columbia adopt the radically expanded definition of “anti-Semitism” that the EU… pic.twitter.com/yXmidTtamh

— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) March 23, 2025

This is not Ziv’s first legal foray. In February, he and two other Israeli former hostages refiled an amended complaint against the U.S.-based media outlet Palestine Chronicle after their original case was dismissed for lack of evidence.

The new lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington state, is backed by the National Jewish Advocacy Center, led by Mark Goldfeder—a former advisor to Israel’s permanent mission to the United Nations. Goldfeder’s organization has attempted similar lawsuits, including one against the Associated Press for allegedly providing “material support for terrorism,” as well as cases targeting UNRWA-USA and Students for Justice in Palestine.

In the suit against Palestine Chronicle, Ziv claims that contributor Abdallah AlJamal was a Hamas operative who held Israeli captives in his home. Based on that allegation, Ziv argues that the outlet provided material support for terrorism by publishing AlJamal’s work. When Israeli forces killed AlJamal and several family members, CNN reported that Israeli officials offered no evidence for their claim that he was a Hamas fighter.

Despite the lack of evidence, neoconservative think tanks such as the Foundation for Defense of Democracies helped amplify the narrative. Qatar-funded Al Jazeera also came under fire because Al Jamal had contributed articles to its site.

In February, Israeli citizen Morris Schnaider filed a separate lawsuit targeting Al Jazeera, alleging the network aided Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in spreading propaganda and inciting violence. The legal action was supported by StandWithUs, a pro-Israel advocacy group known for coordinating with the Israeli government on similar efforts.

While few of these lawsuits are expected to succeed in court, they align with broader efforts by pro-Israel lobbyists and the Trump-aligned right to clamp down on criticism of Israel. In late 2024, Congress passed House Resolution 9495—dubbed the “nonprofit killer bill”—despite widespread condemnation from civil liberties organizations.

For all the legitimate complains that MAGA had about Dems cracking down on free speech, nothing compares to what the Trump admin is doing to put Israel First: https://t.co/jBGap6Y22I

— Aaron Maté (@aaronjmate) March 26, 2025

The bill empowers the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury to revoke the tax-exempt status of nonprofit organizations based on classified evidence and without filing formal charges. This creates a legal gray area where lawsuits—even those lacking evidence—could be used as a pretext to strip organizations of their legal protections/ Although Students for Justice in Palestine is not a registered nonprofit, it receives funding from American Muslims for Palestine, which is.

As Immigration and Customs Enforcement continues to detain and deport U.S. residents and student visa holders—many of whom are not accused of any crime but have merely spoken out against Israel’s war in Gaza—critics warn that a coordinated legal and legislative strategy is underway to criminalize dissent.

Amid a wave of ICE detentions and deportations targeting U.S. residents and student visa holders—none of whom are accused of any crime beyond speaking out against Israeli actions in Gaza—it is not difficult to imagine an AIPAC-backed bill being weaponized against American citizens. Should that occur, it would mark a dangerous escalation in President Donald Trump’s ongoing assault on the First Amendment.

Feature photo | Donald Trump speaks at the 2016 American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) Policy Conference at the Verizon Center, March 21, 2016, in Washington. Evan Vucci | AP

Robert Inlakesh is a political analyst, journalist and documentary filmmaker currently based in London, UK. He has reported from and lived in the occupied Palestinian territories and hosts the show ‘Palestine Files’. Director of ‘Steal of the Century: Trump’s Palestine-Israel Catastrophe’. Follow him on Twitter @falasteen47

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