The Canada Revenue Agency has revoked the charitable status of another Jewish organization — its third in just over a year — fueling allegations the tax department is targeting Jewish groups under pressure from activist complaints.Blacklock's Reporter says Herut Canada Charitable Foundation of Dorval, Que., a small group focused on “Zionist education” that reported $56,111 in revenue last year, was abruptly stripped of its licence. Founder Aaron Hadida said auditors were unusually blunt about what triggered the review. “They actually did admit it was due to outside pressure,” he said. “We knew from day one they had made up their mind.” He insisted the audit had “nothing to do with finances,” adding: “They are going after Jewish charities.”Herut describes itself as “unapologetically Zionist” and supports “the Jewish people’s inalienable right to live freely and securely in their ancestral homeland.” .The group has drawn protests from the Muslim Students’ Association and criticism from student activists after Herut members appeared on university campuses during a wave of antisemitic demonstrations. The University of Toronto’s student paper, The Varsity, complained last January that members were seen “wearing black T-shirts identifying themselves as part of a surveillance team.”Herut is now the third Jewish charity to lose its status since August 10, 2024, when the CRA revoked the Ne’emen Foundation of Canada and the Jewish National Fund on the same day. The National Fund later sued and won access to confidential audit documents it said were influenced by political campaigns rather than proper accounting standards..In a ruling last June 10, Federal Court of Appeal Justice Elizabeth Walker agreed the Fund was entitled to internal records that could show whether the minister’s decision was tainted by bias. “It alleges the Minister of Revenue was biased in making his decision to revoke its charitable status as he acted in part in response to significant public pressure,” she wrote. Walker noted the Fund documented petitions, letters, press statements and activist campaigns that appeared in CRA communications — even among personnel who had no direct role in the audit.A censored CRA report dated January 14 acknowledged internal problems with the agency’s audit practices. “Charities, auditors and employees were aware of unconscious biases and relied on their own experience, procedures and support within the Charities Directorate when making compliance-related decisions,” it stated. The report admitted some audits lacked “clearly detailed internal standards, criteria and review checklists” to ensure consistent and fair decision-making.
