U.S. Nonprofit Fundraising to Buy Drones for Israeli Military in Gaza Genocide

American Friends of Judea and Samaria, a registered nonprofit, uses tax-deductible donations to help supply Israeli soldiers with equipment.

Gabriel Boxer, the “Kosher Guru,” in a video showing destruction in Gaza and promoting donations to American Friends of Judea and Samaria. Source: Instagram.

$8,000 to supply the Israeli military with a thermal drone, $600 for a helmet, $150 for a rifle plate: these are some of the tax-deductible donations that American citizens can make to support the Israeli military.

The campaign is run by a registered U.S. charity that, since the early months of the war, has been fundraising to purchase drones and other military equipment for the Israeli military. The organization, American Friends of Judea and Samaria (AFJS), is a registered nonprofit whose advocacy focuses on strengthening Israeli control over the occupied West Bank and first launched an “Emergency Tactical Gear Campaign” in the weeks after October 7, 2023. AFJS has continued fundraising asking for tax-deductible donations from Americans to help supply Israeli soldiers with a range of equipment including vests, rifle plates, helmets, medical kits, and thermal imaging drones.

AFJS has close ties to the far-right settler movement in Israel and has become increasingly focused on not merely doing advocacy for Israel in the U.S. but also providing the Israeli military with direct material support on the ground via funds raised from American citizens. The contributions allow donors to reduce their own tax burden to the U.S. government in order to channel funds to the Israeli military for its wars in Gaza and elsewhere in the Middle East.