Jewish-American millionaire Daniel Abraham, a leftist, pro-peace activist, provided the funding for the "mass protest" on Motzei Shabbos.
"I support the protest," he said. "I've always been in favor of the peace process and against the settlements. It does a lot of damage when funds are invested over the Green Line. It is better to invest in social programs that bring benefit to citizens within Israel and the people that contribute to the welfare state," Abraham said in an interview with Israel's Channel 10.
Abraham refused to say how much money he donated, but he did remark that he sees a connection between the settlements and the social hardship, and that ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would lead to an economic boost.
"The way to improve the standard of living of the average Israeli is to stop supporting the settlements and chareidim," he said.
Abraham, 87, established the Center for Middle East Peace and has contributed over the years to Shimon Peres and Ehud Barak.
Protest organizers claimed they know nothing about the contribution.
