Episode 32: Mischon de Reya -Zionist law firm

First aired on 3 September 2022

Mishcon de Reya is a law and lobbying firm based in London and Singapore. It is a vast operation including over 600 lawyers. It generates hundreds of millions of pounds of profit yearly but what lurks behind this tidy veneer?

Mishcon de Reya came about through a merger by Baron Victor Mishcon and Barlett De Reya. Victor Mishcon had secretly worked as an intermediary between Israel and Jordan providing his home as the site of meetings between Israeli President Shimon Peres and King Hussein of Jordan.

Victor Mishcon later went on to reign as Vice-President of the Board of Deputies.

A lobby group in Britain which has admitted having a "close working relationship with the Israeli embassy and strengthened links with the Israeli military and Ministry of Strategic Affairs."

The law firm and lobby group has a special section which focuses on Israel related activities. It claims to "provide a seamless service to numerous Israeli institutions." What are some of those institutions?

Documents have revealed that in 2003, Mishcon de Reya acted directly on behalf of the Israeli embassy and then president Ariel Sharon. It has sponsored events for the UK-Israel Tech Hub which is headed by Haim Shani, a former director general in Israel's Ministry of Finance.

One particular Mishcon de Reya event acted as a launch pad for Cyberbit, a cybersecurity subsidiary of Elbit Systems. The law firm proudly boasts of advising The University of Haifa and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem on BDS campaigns against them.

It is also known that Mishcon de Reya approached other companies to help them take on BDS protestors on a pro-bono basis.

It was also essential in the campaign against Corbyn advising both the Jewish Labor Movement and key anti-Corbyn MP Margret Hodge.

Palestine Declassified can also exclusively reveal that several of Mishcon de Reya's employees have simultaneously worked for Israel lobby groups.For example, the Deputy Chair of Mishcon de Reya, Anthony Julius is also chair of the opaquely funded Jewish Chronicle.

In addition to that he is a founder of Engage, which was "set up to oppose the campaign to boycott Israeli artists, musicians, writers, and teachers."

While working at Mischon de Reya Jonathan Cummings, was also director of the Israel office at Britain's largest Israel lobby group BICOM. He later went on to be an advisor to the Office of the President of Israel.

Amy Boekstein, went from Mishcon de Reya, where she worked in PR directly to BICOM.

Jonathan Betesh worked for the Israeli intelligence corps then worked for the Israeli embassy in UK, before working for for Mishcon de Reya.

Rachel Rose worked for Mishcon at the same time as being a fellow of the Zionist New Israel Fund. She later went on to work for Center for Countering Digital Hate which shares its office with the Israel lobbyist Trevor Chinn-led Labour Together project.

Olivia Gordon interned at Mishcon de Reya and then went on to work for the Conservative Friends of Israel.

So, here we have a law and lobbying firm deeply bonded to Israel at every level of the company.

Watch out, Mishcon de Reya could have you on their hit-list.