The Task Force on Arab Citizens of Israel (formerly the Inter-Agency Task Force on Israeli Arab Issues) is a professional resource center on Arab citizens of Israel that promotes American Jewish discourse and engagement. ¹ The Task Force describes itself as “an educational content provider,” and member groups are invited to participate and produce educational material. ² IATF does not give grants, but encourages grant giving to Arab Israelis.

In 2021, the Task Force hosted 61 educational programs, 24 public events, and 23 professional training programs. ³

History

The Task Force on Arab Citizens of Israel was founded in 2006 by a coalition of groups including the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, Anti-Defamation League, United Jewish Appeal -Federation of New York, the New Israel Fund, the Andrea and Charles Bronfman Philanthropies, and the Caroline and Brian Lurie Philanthropic Fund as the Inter-Agency Task Force on Israeli Arab Issues. ⁴

Positions

The Task Force on Arab Citizens of Israel emerged following the publication of the findings and recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry into the Clashes Between Security Forces and Israeli Citizens in October 2000, better known as the Or Commission, which determined that the social, cultural, and economic gap between Israeli Jews and Arabs was one of the most important domestic issues in Israel. The Or Commission was launched in the aftermath of widespread riots by Arab citizens of Israel in 2000 during the Palestinian Second Intifada. In response to the riots and the commission, the Israeli government pledged to make reducing inequality between the two groups a national priority. ^{5 6}

Members

As of May 2025, the Task Force had 77 members, including the Anti-Defamation League, the American Jewish Committee, the Fohs Foundation, the Gimprich Family Foundation, the Mimi and Peter Haas Fund, the New Israel Fund, reGeneration, the National Council of Jewish Culture, the Arnow Family Fund, the Jewish Funders Network, and nine chapters of the Jewish Federations of North America. ⁷

Leadership

Brian Lurie is the president and co-chair of the Task Force on Arab Citizens of Israel’s advisory executive committee and is the president of the Caroline and Brian Lurie Philanthropic Fund. Lurie previously worked as executive director of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties for 17 years and as the president of the San Francisco Jewish Museum for five years. He was also the executive vice president of the United Jewish Appeal, now known as United Jewish Communities, and worked as president of the New Israel Fund. Lurie’s wife, Mimi Haas, is a billionaire heiress of the Levi Strauss fortune and the president of the Mimi and Peter Haas Fund. Their son, Daniel Lurie, was elected Mayor of San Francisco in 2024. ^{8 910}

Ariel Zwang is the other co-chair of the Task Force’s executive committee. She has been the chief executive officer of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee since 2021, and was previously chief executive officer of Safe Horizons, a nonprofit that supports victims of abuse in New York City. Zwang received a White House fellowship under the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development during the Clinton administration. ^{8 11}

Liron Shoham has been the executive director of IATF since 2019, and has worked at the organization since 2012. She previously worked as director of operations from 2009 to 2012 at the Harold Grinspoon Foundation. ^{12 8}

Funding

In 2021, the Inter-Agency Task Force on Israeli Arab Issues earned $671,227 in revenue, almost $500,000 of which came from member dues. ¹³

1. “Expanding Philanthropy to the Israeli Arab Community.” ACPB. Accessed October 20, 2023. https://www.acbp.net/pdf/pdfs-research-and-publications/Expanding%20Philanthropy%20to%20the%20Israeli%20Arab%20Community.pdf
2. “FAQs.” IATF. Accessed October 19, 2023. https://www.iataskforce.org/faqs.
3. “Inter-Agency Task Force on Israeli Arab Issues Annual Report 2021.” IATF. Accessed October 20, 2023. https://www.iataskforce.org/sites/default/files/resource/resource-2076.pdf.
4. “About Us.” Task Force on Arab Citizens of Israel. Accessed May 5, 2025. https://www.acitaskforce.org/about/#TaskForce
5. “Expanding Philanthropy to the Israeli Arab Community.” ACPB. Archived from the original June 22, 2024. Accessed May 5, 2025. https://web.archive.org/web/20240622124714/https://www.acbp.net/pdf/pdfs-research-and-publications/Expanding%20Philanthropy%20to%20the%20Israeli%20Arab%20Community.pdf
6. Balaban, Jessica. “All in Favor.” Haaretz. November 9, 2007. Accessed October 20, 2023. https://www.haaretz.com/2007-11-09/ty-article/all-in-favor/0000017f-f07f-d8a1-a5ff-f0ff4a060000?v=1697815066953.
7. “Membership.” Task Force on Arab Citizens of Israel. Accessed May 5, 2025 https://www.acitaskforce.org/about/#membership
8. “About → Task Force.” Task Force → on Arab Citiznes of Israel, April 21, 2025. https://www.acitaskforce.org/about/.
9. “Jewish philanthropist and Levi Strauss heir running for San Fransisco mayor.” The Times of Israel. September 27, 2023. Accessed October 19, 2023. https://www.timesofisrael.com/jewish-philanthropist-and-levi-strauss-heir-running-for-san-francisco-mayor/.
10. “Daniel Lurie.” Ballotpedia. Accessed May 5, 2025. https://ballotpedia.org/Daniel_Lurie.
11. “Ariel Zwang.” LinkedIn. Accessed October 19, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/ariel-zwang/.
12. “Liron Shoham.” LinkedIn. Accessed October 20, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/liron-shoham-3b057625/.
13. “Inter-Agency Task Force on Israeli Arab Issues Annual Report 2021.” IATF. Accessed October 20, 2023. https://www.acitaskforce.org/resource/inter-agency-task-force-annual-report-2021-2/.