Huckabee was well into his remarks when he told the audience countries should “take a hike” from the ICC’s politicized accusations and push back against the unfair condemnation of Israel. He criticized the unquestioned use of casualty figures delivered by the Gaza authorities. "Dumb cannot be fixed, but ignorance can be fixed," he told the attentive audience.  Accepting unverifiable information is not acceptable. He emphasized that silence is a response, and we must speak up against the lies. 

The US administration has not just talked. The appointment of Leo Terrell to head the multiagency Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism within the Department of Justice and Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun as the U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism, a position that is an ambassador-at-large role within the State Department, shows that combating the serious problem of antisemitism is taken seriously.  He encouraged NGO Monitor to “keep doing what you are doing."

Prof. Steinberg outlined the scale of NGO involvement in the conflict, noting that around 40 NGOs operating in Gaza have cooperated with or enabled Hamas. Finding the materials, NGO Monitor’s research and translation make these materials accessible and published. He pointed to Human Rights Watch’s long-standing bias, calling its record with antisemitism increasingly influencing the work of major organizations and even government officials.

Deutsch highlighted how international bodies and some U.S. institutions have “followed suit” in echoing distorted narratives. She stressed the need to challenge lawfare, misuse of humanitarian aid mechanisms, and policies that inadvertently assist Hamas, including those affecting hostage negotiations. 

Huckabee noted that Israel has allowed more aid into Gaza during the war than at any time in its history. Evidence showed hostages were being starved as Hamas images had men with "buttons popping." He referenced that there were 42 American hostages.

Huckabee also turned to broader regional and historical themes, including incitement in Palestinian textbooks, the role of the Abraham Accords, with the possibility of Syria and Lebanon joining soon

Despite rising antisemitism worldwide, including what Steinberg called levels “not seen in 50 years,” Huckabee urged calm, factual responses rather than shouting matches. “Push back, but say it clearly,” Huckabee advised. “Respond with facts and a steady voice. And repeat the facts calmly.”

For the past twenty-five years, transparency, accountability, and responsible engagement have been at the core of NGO Monitor’s research.  The evening closed with a call for Europe and the international community to recognize how certain funding frameworks fuel antisemitism and enable hostile actors. 

Huckabee mentioned the enduring connection of the Jewish people to the land and Jerusalem over 3,800 years. "No other people have called Jerusalem its capital; they were somewhere else...If you doubt the Bible, go see the City of David,” he said. “It’s real—and it should be celebrated.” 

The event was held on December 10 to mark International Human Rights Day. “It should be a day of honoring the principles of human rights,” said Prof. Gerald Steinberg, president of NGO Monitor. “But instead it has become a day of mourning, and is exploited in the most blatant ways.”

The conversation centered on NGO Monitor’s recent groundbreaking report: “Puppet Regime: Hamas' Coercive Grip on Aid and NGO Operations in Gaza,” which painted a sprawling picture, based on scores of internal Hamas documents, of Hamas’ infiltration and exploitation of international NGOs’ operations in Gaza.