Attacking separation over storied charitable support for settlements

But the Israeli group, known by the Hebrew acronym KKL, is now considering formally extending its activities to the owned West Bank. That has provoked hard struggle from left-wing Jewish groups in the United States, deepening movement with an increasingly right-wing Israeli government.

The debate has drawn attention to the fact that the KKL, which owns more than a tenth of all land in Israel, has been working quietly in the West Bank for decades, building and expanding settlements that are considered by the majority of the international community to be in violation of international law.

A separate organization based in New York, also known as the Jewish National Fund, does not take place on the settlements and usually operates within Israel.

The controversy began earlier this month when the Axios news website reported that the KKL was considering a proposal to openly finance the purchase of land from Palestinians in the West Bank. The move could contribute hundreds of millions of dollars to urban expansion, some deep within the owned area.

Israel captured the West Bank in the Six Day War in 1967, and the Palestinians want it to be a key part of their state in the future. They see the settlements – which contain nearly 500,000 Israelis – as the main obstacle to a two-state solution to the conflict.

Israel sees the West Bank as the Bible’s main heart of the Jews and says any segregation should be compromised in peace talks, which have largely been moribund for over a decade.

The proposal had to be approved by the KKL board of directors, which includes representatives from several Jewish groups and is not expected to decide before the country holds nationwide elections on March 23rd.

“Over the years and to this day, KKL-JNF has worked in all parts of the Land of Israel, including Judea and Samaria,” he said, using his name Bible at the West Bank. “At this stage, it is not planned to open a new area in Judea and Samaria.”

She also said that all projects are pre-approved by donors, suggesting that money intended for projects within Israel would not be transferred to owned land.

But Peace Now, an Israeli anti-settlement watchdog, says the KKL has been working quietly in the West Bank for decades, acquiring at least 65,000 forts (16,000 acres) of land for settlements, mainly through a subgroup.

“This has happened before so this is not a sea change,” Brian Reeves said. “But this is the first time that they have officially confirmed this, the idea of ​​buying land in the West Bank, and necessarily stated” we do not agree with a law between -national, or ownership, or so the two-state solution is important. “

Palestinians see the sale of land to settlers as a betrayal of their national purpose, so such transactions are usually conducted in secret or through intermediaries, opening them up to allegations of fraud. In some cases, they lead to the eviction of Palestinian families who claim to have never sold their property.

While the settlements within Israel are widely supported, they have been seen as an obstacle to peace by many Western investigations, which also contradict the Israeli government on religious issues. Most American citizens belong to the more liberal streams of Judaism and feel stopped by Israel’s ultra-orthodox authorities, which question their religion and practices.

Rabbi Rick Jacobs, head of the Union for Reformed Judaism, North America’s largest Jewish movement, says the KKL move stems from recent elections at the World Zionist Congress that empowered leaders right closer to Israeli government.

His group and others who oppose settlements have rejected KKL’s proposal and have vowed to oppose it when the board meets, but it is unclear if they have enough votes. Jacobs worries that the move could halt the KKL for many in the West or spark tensions with the new U.S. administration, which is also opposed to settlement expansion.

He acknowledged that the KKL has operated in the West Bank in the past, but says that its activities have plummeted over the last two decades before it began to operate. -again and accelerated in secrecy in recent years, prompting a challenge from the URJ and other agencies.

“Basically we blew the whistle and said wait a minute, a lot of land buying is going on under the table, under the unattended radar, and in fact, without even that formal permission to do so, “he said.

“Here in North America, most people are against the diversification of the settlement campaign,” he said. “That’s something an American feels strongly about.”

The US-based JNF is a separate organization with its own board and offices in New York and Jerusalem. President Russell Robinson said he is not involved in politics and is focusing on projects in the Negev and Galile regions of Israel.

“Politics is not where most people want to get involved,” he said. “They want to be involved in making the world a better place, and we will give them that opportunity. “

The U.S. JNF enters into a contract for forestry and reservoir construction for the KKL, in which Robinson refers to it as “seller service.” It has also funded some small projects in the owned areas, including a heritage museum in the Gush Etzion settlement block.

Robinson dismisses the situation within major Zionist groups and says it had no effect on his organization’s fundraising. But Jacobs says Israelis should be concerned about the dire relationship between their hawkish government and their friends abroad.

“The American people are deeply involved in the political life of the United States,” he said. “We are working more time to close the differences and establish a more common ground, but we are not going to to renounce our core commitments to do so. “