RAMALLAH, December 8, 2015 (WAFA) – Private US donors gave Israeli settlements over $220 million in tax-exempt funds over five years, Tuesday revealed an investigation conducted by the Israeli daily, Haaretz.

“Private US donors are massively funding Israeli settlements by using a network of tax-exempt nonprofits, which funnelled more than $220 million to West Bank settlements in 2009-2013 alone,” reported Haaretz.

“The funding is being used for anything from buying air conditioners to supporting the families of convicted Jewish terrorists, and comes from tax-deductible donations made to around 50 US-based groups,” added Haaretz.

Considering their status as nonprofits, the newspaper noted that this means that “the U.S. government is incentivizing and indirectly supporting the Israeli settlement movement, even though it has been consistently opposed by every U.S. administration for the past 48 years.”

“The findings also show that while Israel’s political right often criticizes left-wing organizations for receiving foreign donations – and has made several attempts to curtail such funding – groups that support the settlements also receive extensive funding from abroad, albeit from different sources.”

“While left-wing NGOs and human rights groups receive large donations from foreign governments and institutions, Israeli settlement groups are mostly supported by private individuals who donate through nonprofit organizations.”

Haartez noted that while it is difficult to gather comprehensive information on all donors, some benefactors include major donors to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and some others donate to the US Republican Party.

Haaretz investigation revealed that at least 50 organizations from across the United States are involved in raising funds for settlements and settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Their revenues between 2009 and 2013 – the last year for which there is extensive data – amounted to over $281 million. Most of these funds came from donations, while some came from returns on capital investments.

Nearly 80 percent of this income (about $224 million) was transferred to the occupied territories as grants, mostly through Israeli nonprofits. In 2013 alone, these organizations raised $73 million and allotted $54 million in grants.

In response to a question whether granting of tax-exempt status to these organizations did not contradict the U.S. position on settlements, a senior US official told Haaretz that “the policy of every administration since 1967, Democrat and Republican alike, has been to object to Israeli settlement beyond the 1967 borders.

“The present administration is no different,” the official continued. “Concordant with permanent U.S. policies, this administration never defended or supported any activity associated with the settlements. It doesn’t support or advance any activity that will legitimize them.

To be noted, Settlements are illegal under international law as they violate Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits the transfer of the occupying power’s civilian population into occupied territory.

The Security Council, the General Assembly, the Human Rights Council and the International Court of Justice have all confirmed that the construction and expansion of Israeli settlements and other settlement-related activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory are illegal under international law.

K.F./T.R.