Thousands of demonstrators rallied in Washington within hours of the start of the US-Israel military campaign against Iran, in what appears to be a combined mobilization effort linked to a China-based US billionaire, according to a new investigation published Thursday by Calcalist and the watchdog outlet Shomrim.
The report said the groups driving the anti-war mobilization are the same organizations that have led anti-Israel protests in recent years, and adds that those groups have also been linked to activism around Iran-related protests, even as their alleged funding ecosystem has drawn scrutiny in past reporting and on Capitol Hill.
In May 2024, a Network Contagion Research Institute report said three conveners of the Shut It Down For Palestine coalition, including the ANSWER Coalition and The People’s Forum, were connected through a “web” of financial, personal, personnel and ideological ties to Shanghai-based US citizen Neville Roy Singham and his wife, CODEPINK co-founder Jodie Evans, including claims about Evans’s role on The People’s Forum board.
Calcalist/Shomrim reported that three organizations, CodePink, the ANSWER Coalition (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism), and the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), were among the most prominent drivers of the demonstrations opposing the Iran war, Israel and US policy.
The report framed the speed and geographic spread of the rallies as evidence of a coordinated, funded organizing infrastructure rather than a purely spontaneous grassroots response.
It said it contacted CodePink and ANSWER with questions about their ties to Singham-linked entities, the scope of funding, and the absence of criticism toward Iran in their messaging, but that responses had not been received at the time of publication.
The investigation placed Singham, a US tech businessman living in Shanghai, at the center of the broader network it says has supported organizations opposing Israel and US policy. This network has been covered extensively by The Jerusalem Post.
In June 2024, CODEPINK activists disrupted then-Vice President Kamala Harris during a televised appearance, an incident described as part of a broader push to demand an arms embargo on Israel and an end to US aid.
Singham faces congressional scrutiny
In September 2025, two US House members sent a letter urging the Treasury Department to evaluate the applicability of federal sanctions and to review and potentially freeze assets of Singham and affiliated entities, alleging he supported radical far-left, pro-CCP and anti-Israel groups through a network of organizations.
Previously, US lawmakers have held hearings and sought information about foreign-linked funding streams and tax-exempt organizations connected to the protest ecosystem, including calls to review or investigate specific groups’ status and activities.
In September 2025, the US House Ways and Means Committee opened an investigation into The People’s Forum, seeking documents about foreign funding and alleged ties to Singham, and citing claims that Evans served on the forum’s board and that the forum acknowledged having received funding from Singham.
Michael Starr contributed to this report.