The Duke’s foundation has since halted funding to the organisation over Janan Najeeb’s ‘anti-Israel’ remarks, after she called the country an ‘apartheid state’
April 15, 2025 10:21
The Archewell Foundation charity, founded by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, gave two $27,960 (£21,100) grants to a Milwaukee Muslim advocacy organisation whose found called for the “liberation of Palestine” and called Israel an “apartheid state”, it has been revealed.
The Milwaukee Muslim Women’s Coalition thanked the couple’s charity on its website after it received the first donation in 2023, NewsNation reported last week.
“With your support, in 2023, we took swift and impactful action in response to the war on Gaza. Our efforts, alongside other Wisconsin-based organisations, aimed to raise awareness and demand human rights for Palestinians,” the message read. A second grant was then given in 2024.
Palestinian-American Janan Najeeb, the founder and executive director of the Milwaukee Muslim Women’s Coalition, wrote an opinion piece that year that stated: “Israel’s 75-year occupation of Palestine and the genocide in Gaza are a grave injustice.
"We demand a permanent ceasefire, an end to arming the apartheid state of Israel and the liberation of Palestine. From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. From the sea to the river, Palestine will live forever”
Following an approach from NewsNation, the Archewell Foundation said it will “no longer be making any further donations [to the coalition].
“We were not aware of this before you told us and are grateful you raised this with us,” a source within Archewell told the outlet.
In a letter sent to Najeeb, Archewell heads James Holt and Shauna Nep wrote: “Janan, we’ve recently been notified of a blog post you wrote that goes against the values of the foundation. As a foundation, we celebrate different perspectives and backgrounds but we have zero tolerance for hateful words, actions or propaganda.
“When we started the welcome project, we did so to support Afghan women in finding community, and we are proud of the work we have done to support women in Milwaukee. We remain committed to fostering partnerships that reflect and reinforce the values our foundation stands for.
"We will be removing MWC from our network effective as of today. At this time, the foundation will be making no additional grants to MMWC.”
The Archewell Foundation, named in honour of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s son, Archie, was established five years ago following the couple’s decision to step back from royal duties and move to the United States.
According to the Sussexes, the foundation was created “to unite and uplift communities, both locally and globally,” with a message on the charity’s website stating: “We believe that philanthropy is not a handout; it’s a hand held.”