A groups that monitors settlements in the West Bank says Israel has budgeted millions of dollars to protect and support the growth of small, unofficial Jewish farms in the Israeli-occupied territory.
FILE - A horse belonging to Israel i settler Yinon Levi is seen at his farm in the West Bank outpost of Meitarim, Sunday, May 12, 2024. The Israel i government has budgeted millions of dollars in security support for small, unofficial Jewish outposts in the Israel i-occupied West Bank , which is enabling the expansion of Jewish settlements while circumventing the official planning process, according to a human rights group.
The Ministry of Settlements and National Mission, which is headed by a far-right settler leader, confirmed it budgeted 75 million shekels last year for security equipment for “young settlements” — the term it uses for unauthorized Jewish farms and outposts in the West Bank. The money was quietly authorized in December while the country’s attention was focused on the war against Hamas in Gaza.
Hagit Ofran, director of Peace Now’s “settlement watch” program, said the funding was the first time the Israeli government has channeled money to the outposts so openly.in the West Bank in three decades, declaring a wide swath of the territory state land in preparation for new construction.Israel’s presence in the Palestinian territories is unlawful and called for an immediate halt to settlement construction.
The budget was approved in December and predates the sanctions. The government did not publish a list of the farms and outposts that received funding, so it’s unclear if the sanctioned farms and outposts are among them. But it’s likely that at least some of them are since the budget supported 68 of the nearly 70 farms identified by Peace Now, Ofran said. The number of farms has since grown to more than 90.
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