Cafod among organisations demanding end to trade with Israeli settlements

An alliance of more than 80 civil society organisations has launched a new campaign, Stop Trade with Settlements, demanding countries to ban all trade with Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory.

The campaign targets settlement trade specifically because of Israel’s actions in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, which the alliance believes undermines the viability of a future Palestinian state. “Ending trade with settlements is a necessary step to uphold human rights, protect Palestinian livelihoods, stop Israel’s settlement expansion and end the unlawful occupation,” the alliance said in a statement launching the campaign. 

Over the last four years, Israel has increased settlement activities in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in both settlement construction and land appropriation. In 2023, the Israeli government approved the construction of 30,682 housing units in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, representing a 180 per cent increase in just five years.

Campaigners say that trade with settlements serves to legitimise them. Poverty in the West Bank has risen from 12 to 28 per cent in the past two years, with a recorded unemployment rate of 35 per cent, doubled since October 2023. 

Israel attracts business investment into its settlements across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, via incentives such as cheap land leases, subsidies for technology and wages, tax breaks, and cash grants. have been documented as offering hotels and accommodation in Israeli settlements across the West Bank. 

The EU is Israel’s largest trade partner accounting for roughly 32 per cent of its overall trade in goods, with a total trade volume amounting to €42 billion per year. The UK is one of Israel’s largest European trade partners, worth just under £6 billion a year. 

Stay updated — add us as a preferred news source on Google: