No British charity should be supporting Israeli settlements in the West Bank, said Sir Keir Starmer during Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) on Wednesday.
In the Commons, Labour backbencher Melanie Ward, a former chief executive of Medical Aid for Palestinians, told MPs: “The existence of Israeli settlements and settler violence against Palestinians is a major and deliberate impediment to peace”.
Presenting her findings, which she told the chamber were reached with the help of “Israeli human rights researchers”, Ward claimed that 32 British charities were “funnelling money to Israeli settlements on Palestinian land,” adding that she had complained about this to the Charity Commission last week.
“In the last five years, they have sent over £28 million to illegal settlements with a likely taxpayer subsidy through gift aid of more than £ 5 million”, she alleged. “Our constituents will be appalled by this.”
The MP for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath – former prime minister Gordon Brown’s erstwhile constituency – asked Starmer whether he agreed that “funnelling money to Israeli settlements is extremist activity, not charitable activity” and urged him to be clear that it was a “banned” practice.
Starmer responded by describing Israeli settlements in the West Bank as “a flagrant breach of international law”, adding that “no UK charity should be supporting them”.
The prime minister went on to say that Hamish Falconer, the Middle East minister, had met the Charity Commission on Wednesday to further discuss these concerns.
Starmer also refused to rule out further sanctions against those who support settler violence in the West Bank, following on from fresh sanctions on six entities and one individual accused of financing, enabling and carrying out settler violence in the West Bank, which the government announced yesterday.
“British businesses should have no economic involvement in illegal settlements”, Starmer added, describing the situation across the Palestinian territories as “desperate” and pledging that his government would “continue to lead efforts to prevent human suffering and get aid in and preserve the viability of a two-state solution”.
Also yesterday, a joint statement by the foreign ministers of Australia, Canada, France, Norway, and the UK confirmed the coordinated sanctions were imposed to “hold extremist settlers accountable for the horrific levels of settler violence against Palestinian civilians”.
It continued: “For too long, violent settlers have been able to act with near impunity, and settlement expansion and creation of outposts continue with the support and facilitation of the Government of Israel. In some cases, settler violence takes place under the protection of Israel’s security forces.
"We continue to urge the Government of Israel to take action to ensure meaningful accountability for violence in the West Bank.”
In response to the measures, rabbis Charley Bagisnky and Josh Levi, co-leaders of the Movement for Progressive Judaism, said: “We welcome the UK government's decision to impose targeted sanctions on those responsible for financing, enabling and carrying out settler violence in the West Bank.
"As Progressive Jews, we have consistently opposed settlement expansion, settler violence and moves towards annexation. Settler violence is not only an attack on Palestinians; it is a direct contradiction of Jewish values and of the vision set out in Israel's Declaration of Independence.
"We support a liberal, democratic State of Israel, as envisaged in that Declaration, with equal rights for all its citizens. Settlement expansion, settler violence and annexation make a negotiated two-state solution harder to achieve and damage Israel's future as both a Jewish and democratic state.”
However, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said: “Israel firmly rejects the disgraceful measures adopted by foreign governments against Israeli citizens, entities, and a government minister [the latter referring to France imposing a travel ban on Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich].
“The real essence of these steps is the attempt to impose a political stance regarding the right of Jews to live in the Land of Israel and concerning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict - camouflaged as measures against violence.”
Ward had also referenced the 32 charities allegedly involved with settlements in response to yesterday’s statement in the Commons announcing the sanctions, during which she mentioned one of them by name.
Responding, Yvette Cooper said Falconer’s meeting with the Charity Commissioner was being held “to pursue exactly this issue to ensure there is a thorough investigation”.
She went on: “Some evidence suggests that rules are being broken. We should not end up with UK gift aid being funnelled to illegal settlements. That clearly breaches all the standards that anybody across the UK would expect there to be, as well as the Charity Commission rules, which is why it is essential to look at this.”
The foreign secretary also emphasised the government’s opposition to “trade with illegal settlements”.
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