Jewish-American multibillionaire Arthur Dantchik has announced that he is ceasing to donate to the Forum Kohelet, the conservative organization behind the legal reform promoted by Netanyahu's government, the Calcalist news site reported on Friday.
Dantchik said in a statement: "Throughout my life, I have supported a variety of organizations that promote individual freedoms and economic freedom for everyone. When society is divided in a way that endangers democracy, the order of the day is to focus on bringing hearts together and repairing the rifts in social cohesion. I decided to stop supporting think tanks in Israel, including Forum Kohelet. I believe that at this time, the most necessary thing for the State of Israel is to heal the rifts and restore national unity."
Forum Kohelet said in response to Dantchik's announcement: "We do not comment on the donors to Forum Kohelet. The base of donations to the Forum is broad and constantly growing."
Dantchik's fortune is estimated at $7.5 billion and he is among the 100 richest people in the United States. Among other things, he is on the board of the Chinese company ByteDance, which controls the social media platform TikTok.
This article was translated from Hebrew by Benji Sharp.
