FIDF Raises the Money. Another Organization Spends It.

Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF) is a fundraising organization. It raises money in the United States. It does not itself operate most programs in Israel.

The bulk of FIDF's $139 million in annual program grants flows to one Israeli nonprofit most American donors have never heard of: the Association for Israel's Soldiers (AFIS). FIDF's board approves categories of spending. AFIS executes the programs. Money is wired to AFIS twice monthly under board-approved letters of commitment.

According to FIDF's filings, the principal exception is IMPACT! — a scholarship program FIDF operates directly, accounting for $15.8 million in 2025.

AFIS: The Organization Spending FIDF's Money

The Association for Israel's Soldiers is an Israeli amuta (nonprofit) that works directly with the IDF and the Israeli Ministry of Defense. AFIS was formed in 2016 from the merger of three charities, including LIBI (Lema'an Hayalei Tzahal), which had been the IDF's primary domestic welfare fund.

AFIS employs staff, manages vendor relationships, coordinates with IDF units, and reports back to FIDF on program outcomes. FIDF's board designates how funds are to be used — health, well-being, education, construction — and AFIS deploys them within those categories. Funds are disbursed twice monthly per the letters of commitment.

FIDF Grant Recipients

Source: FIDF 2025 audited financial statements and Charity Navigator.

The $139 Million Audit Boundary

Grant Thornton LLP audits FIDF's financial statements annually. The 2025 audit — filed August 6, 2026, with an unmodified opinion — verifies that FIDF recorded $139 million in program grants as an expense.

That audit does not tell an American donor, dollar by dollar, what AFIS ultimately purchased or delivered in Israel. AFIS sits outside the scope of FIDF's U.S. audit. AFIS is subject to Israeli regulatory oversight — it files with the Registrar of Amutot under Israeli law — but those filings are not equivalent to IRS Form 990 in detail or public accessibility.

Whether FIDF's board receives and reviews an independent audit of AFIS is not disclosed in FIDF's public filings.

FIDF maintains strong third-party ratings — a Charity Navigator four-star rating for 11 consecutive years and Candid's 2025 Platinum Transparency Seal. These ratings primarily assess FIDF's American operations and financial health. They do not evaluate AFIS's Israeli operations.

How the Money Moves: Donor to Soldier

Step 1: Fundraising. FIDF raised $192 million in 2025. Contributions ($123 million), events ($42 million net), investment income ($15 million), bequests ($7 million). 25 chapters across the United States.

Step 2: Board allocation. FIDF's board — 59 voting members, all independent per the 2024 Form 990 — approves letters of commitment by category: health, well-being, education, construction.

Step 3: Wire transfer. Funds move to AFIS twice monthly under the letters of commitment. Multi-year commitments create grants payable on FIDF's balance sheet ($66.8 million at year-end 2025).

Step 4: Program execution. AFIS coordinates with IDF units, the Ministry of Defense, and contracted vendors. Construction through Israeli permitting. Mental health through Sheba and Cohen Veterans Network. Lone soldiers through Nefesh B'Nefesh.

Step 5: IMPACT! (the exception). 3,221 scholarships in 2025-2026. Full four-year university scholarships for former combat soldiers from disadvantaged backgrounds. 130 hours of annual community service required. 20,000+ graduates since 2002. FIDF's most direct line from donor to beneficiary.

Two Alternative Models

Not every Israel charity operates through a single Israeli grantee. Two examples illustrate different structures:

Hadassah operates hospitals directly. Hadassah Medical Organization in Israel is not a pass-through — it is the program. American donors fund a hospital system that Hadassah itself controls. More direct accountability, but also more operational complexity and risk.

United Hatzalah of Israel funds volunteer emergency medical responders. Money goes to equipment, motorcycles, training. Tight deployment cycle. Less institutional intermediation than FIDF's model.

FIDF's distinguishing feature is scale — $139 million per year through a single primary grantee — combined with the structural separation between the fundraising entity (FIDF, audited in the U.S.) and the spending entity (AFIS, regulated in Israel).

Other Organizations Raising Funds for IDF Soldiers

FIDF describes itself as the official U.S. organization authorized to collect charitable donations for IDF soldiers. When JTA asked the IDF spokesperson's office to confirm this in 2025, the military declined and referred questions to AFIS.

Other organizations raising funds for soldiers include American Friends of LIBI (which claims equivalent IDF authorization), Yashar LaChayal, Operation Israel, Friends of Duvdevan, American Friends of Unit 669, and American Friends of Israel Navy SEALs. Donor-advised funds — PEF Israel Endowment Funds, the Jewish Communal Fund, the Central Fund of Israel — also channel contributions to Israeli soldier-welfare organizations.

The Unanswered Question

FIDF's books are audited by Grant Thornton. The question that FIDF's public filings do not answer: who independently audits the organization in Israel spending most of FIDF's grant money — and does FIDF's board see that audit?

For the full FIDF financial analysis — three-year overview, program-by-program breakdown, reserves, salaries, emergency campaign status, and expanded FAQ — see Olam's FIDF authority page.

Sources

FIDF 2025 Audited Financial Statements — Grant Thornton LLP, August 6, 2026.

FIDF 2024 Audited Financial Statements — Grant Thornton LLP, October 22, 2025.

FIDF 2024 IRS Form 990 — EIN 13-3156445.

Charity Navigator — Rating for FIDF, EIN 133156445, FY2024.