UK Charity Commission investigating donations to illegal Israeli settlements in West Bank

The UK's Charity Commission has launched an investigation into registered charities over concerns raised that they are working in illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the commission said that eight charities will initially be investigated after concerns were raised, with further charities potentially being added. No charity has yet been named in the investigation.

"The investigation will seek to establish the extent of the use of charitable funds in illegal Israeli settlements, the purpose of that spending, and, if so, whether this was in furtherance of the charities' purposes," the commission said.

It added that the investigation "will also enable the Commission to assess whether charity assets or beneficiaries are at risk, and what regulatory action, if any, is required to resolve the concerns".

The commission will publish a report on its findings once the investigation has completed, which could see regulatory action.

Asked what action could look like, the Charity Commission detailed to The New Arab its full range of powers that it could use as part of the investigation and following the investigation's completion.

"Some of these powers relate to information gathering and some are temporary, protective powers such as restricting transactions or 'freezing' a bank account."

"Other powers are typically used once findings have been established, where relevant thresholds are met, for example, disqualifying trustees or issuing an official warning," it added.

The commission clarified to The New Arab that there wasn't a timeframe for how long the inquiry would take.

Stephen Roake, Assistant Director, High Risk Compliance at the Charity Commission, said that "serious allegations have been made about UK charities operating in illegal Israeli settlements in Palestine, so our first step is to establish the facts. Only then can we determine if regulatory action is required, based on our findings and the evidence we see".

"Our fact-finding will also help us develop regulatory guidance for charities, which will to help ensure public trust and confidence in charities," he added.

There have been several incidents of UK-based charities supporting illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank and fundraisers for Israeli soldiers, which have seen complaints to the Charity Commission.

This includes claims made by Labour MP Melanie Ward, who said that illegal settlements received £28 million in donations from 32 charities in England and Wales over the past five years.

This includes a likely taxpayer subsidy of close to £5.6 million of gift aid against the donations.

The latest probe is a result of the complaint made by Ward, according to The Guardian.

Most recently, complaints were made after a Synagogue in Edgware, North London, held a controversial Great Israeli Real Estate event that saw the marketing of property in illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank, a claim denied by the organisers.

The event saw over 100 parliamentarians call for the event to be cancelled, protests outside the event, and a complaint filed to the Charity Commission by the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP).

In a statement to The New Arab, the ICJP welcomed the Charity Commission's move, with Legal Researcher Shaima Dallali saying that the announcement "follows years of sustained work by ICJP and others to bring evidence of potential misconduct before the regulator".

"Over the past two years, ICJP has been at the forefront of scrutinising UK charities connected to Israel's illegal settlement enterprise," she added.

Though it is unknown which charities are being investigated and whether this includes those involved in the Great Israeli Real Estate Event, Dallali noted that the group had also filed a complaint to the commission over the charities' hosting of the event, a significant development as it "expanded the regulatory issues before the Charity Commission beyond charitable donations alone".

This includes whether charities can use their premises and status to facilitate and legitimise the marketing of property in the occupied West Bank.

While charities are regulated by the Charity Commission, commercial companies, which were the main parties said to be involved in the alleged promotion of properties in the occupied West Bank at the Great Israeli Real Estate event, fall under the guidance of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

"That reflected the same underlying concern running through our wider body of complaints: whether UK charities are complying with their legal duties and where their activities are connected to Israel's unlawful settlement enterprise," Dallali said.

"Public confidence in the charity sector depends upon ensuring that charitable status cannot be used to facilitate activities connected with violations of international law. It is now time for the Charity Commission to use its regulatory powers to do just that," she added."