If carried out, the move could give Israel or other governments a pretext to ban or restrict the work of the rights groups, critics say.
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is weighing a proposal to brand prominent human rights organizations as"anti-Semitic" and to discourage governments from supporting their work, five congressional aides and a Department of State official told NBC News.
The Anti-Defamation League, an organization that seeks to fight anti-Semitism and bigotry, said it would be a mistake to carry out the proposal. Story continuesSome lawyers in the department have raised serious concerns about the legality and implications of such a decision, including whether it violates the First Amendment rights of the human rights organizations, two Democratic congressional aides said.
Human Rights Watch, along with other rights groups, has a long-established relationship with the State Department, the Pentagon and other government agencies, and sometimes briefs ambassadors before they start new posts. Although Human Rights Watch regularly delivers tough criticism of the United States, the group also works in close cooperation with administrations from both parties on some issues, providing detailed reporting on rights violations that shape U.S. policy, Prasow said.
Oxfam said it had a long history of working to protect the rights and lives of Israelis and Palestinians and vowed to continue its work.
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