UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) has asked the Charity Commission to investigate a Hackney charity trustee.

UKLFI’s complaints relate to social media posts shared by Mr Irfan Siddik Malik, who holds senior positions in three Hackney charities responsible for distributing grants and providing housing and support to local residents. These charities are required to operate fairly and without discrimination for the benefit of the community.

Mr Malik is Chair of the directors of Hackney Endowed Trustee Ltd and the sole trustee of Hackney Joint Estate Charity. The charity holds property originally donated to the local Church of England in the 16^th century to provide an income for distribution to needy people. Any profits from running the estates are now donated to Hackney charities including West Hackney Parochial Charity, where Mr Malik is vice-chair of trustees. This was formed from the amalgamation of 32 ancient individual charities, to benefit the residents of the ecclesiastical parish of West Hackney. The first legacy was left by Thomas Heron in 1603, the year Queen Elizabeth I died. Mr Malik is also a  trustee of The West Hackney Almshouse Charity.

Mr Malik’s posts have included the following:

• Comparing the war in Gaza to the Holocaust: An image of an IDF guard outside Gaza telling a German guard outside Auschwitz, “History repeats itself eh?”
• Blaming the Israelis for 7^th October: “The IDF killed many Israelis on October 7^th”   and “Israel Faked it all. Hamas Evidence has been exposed as CGI and Israel is freaking out”
• Blood libel: “Some people go to Africa to shoot game. British Israelis go to Gaza to shoot kids” and an image of a man painting  blood on a door post with the caption “Passover ..because Lamb’s blood helps God kill the right kids”  and Irfan Malik comments “Now their God uses US bombs.”
• Accusing Israel of controlling other governments: An image of a large dog with a Star of David on its collar saying “Good Boy” while it takes a tiny American person for a walk, indicating that Israel tells the USA what to do.
• An image of Trump and Kamala Harris kneeling in front of Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister
• An image showing a hand marked with an Israeli flag pulling the strings to control some smaller hands marked with a USA flag, which in turn pull strings to control tiny soldiers each with flags from the UK, Canada, France, Germany and Ukraine.
• Images which blame Israel for the spread of antisemitism
• A poster saying “It’s humanity vs Israel” implying that Israel is singularly inhumane.

UKLFI argues that Mr Malik’s posts engage multiple examples within the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) Working Definition of Antisemitism, including Holocaust inversion, blood libels, conspiracy theories about Jewish power and comparisons between contemporary Israeli policy and Nazi Germany.

UKLFI points out that trustees and senior charity officers must act in the best interests of their charities, protect their charities’ reputations and maintain public trust and confidence. UKLFI contends that a trustee who repeatedly disseminates material that could be seen as antisemitic, risks undermining confidence among Jewish beneficiaries, residents, applicants and donors that they will be treated fairly and impartially. Public confidence in a charity’s governance may be damaged where a trustee publicly shares material portraying Jews as collectively responsible for wrongdoing or as part of global conspiracies

In relation to the West Hackney Almshouse Charity, which provides housing accommodation, UKLFI argues that trustees must be able to demonstrate impartiality and fairness towards current and prospective residents from all backgrounds.

Similarly, the grant-making charities must be able to demonstrate that funding decisions are made without prejudice towards any section of the community and that beneficiaries should have confidence that applications will be assessed objectively.

The complaints ask the Charity Commission to investigate whether Mr Malik’s conduct is compatible with the standards expected of charity trustees and senior officers and whether his continued involvement in the governance of these charities risks damaging public trust and confidence in the charitable sector.

A spokesperson for UK Lawyers for Israel, commented:

“Charities must support their beneficiaries fairly and without discrimination. Trustees and senior officers are expected to uphold standards that maintain public confidence in their organisations. We believe that the volume and nature of the material promoted by Mr Malik raise serious questions about his ability to fulfil those responsibilities and about the confidence that Jewish beneficiaries and members of the public can have in the charities concerned. We have therefore asked the Charity Commission to investigate these matters urgently.”

UKLFI has requested that the Charity Commission examine the complaints and take any action it considers appropriate.

Mr Irfan Malik was asked for his comments but did not respond.

Irfan Malik’s alleged social media posts can be seen on the GnasherJew website HERE, and UKLFI thanks Gnasher Jew for their research.