JERUSALEM

The United States, Israel’s closest ally, has imposed sanctions on Israeli settler group Amana over ongoing violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.

The US Treasury Department said on Monday that Amana supports unauthorized settler outposts that are being used to expand Jewish-only settlements and seize Palestinian land.

The sanctions also targeted an Amana subsidiary called Binyanei Bar Amana, raising questions about the future of the organization, which transacts with all Israeli banks.

Under international law, all Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories are considered “illegal.”

For decades, the UN has called on Israel to end its settlement activities, to no avail because the settlements undermine efforts to achieve a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

What is Amana?

Amana was established in 1979 to support the construction of Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, the Gaza Strip, the Syrian Golan Heights, the Galilee and the Negev, in the north and south of Israel.

The organization focuses on building new colonies, expanding existing ones, and developing settlement outposts. Its activity focuses on the occupied West Bank.

Since 1989, Ze’ev Hever has been its secretary general.

Amana also operates in the construction sector in the West Bank through its subsidiaries Binyanei Bar Amana Ltd and Al-Watan. Its activities include encouraging settlers to settle in new settlements, planning and establishing settlements and outposts, and assisting Israeli authorities in these locations.

The organization always seeks to avoid media attention. Despite his assets estimated at hundreds of millions of shekels, his influence on Israeli life is considerable, according to the Hebrew daily The Marker, the economic supplement of the Israeli daily Haaretz.

Amana is considered the main settlement arm of the Gush Emunim movement, a nationalist religious social movement that emerged after the 1973 war to promote settlements in the West Bank, Golan Heights, Gaza Strip and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. .

In the 1980s, Gush Emunim ceased to exist as an official entity, with some members integrating into right-wing parties.

Amana oversees settlement construction, building houses, renting caravans, buying land in the West Bank, and establishing settlement outposts. Its website promotes houses for sale in settlements in the occupied West Bank through its subsidiary Binyanei Bar Amana Ltd.

Some of the settlements listed on Amana’s website are unauthorized outposts that have not been officially sanctioned by the Israeli government.

Illegal operations

An investigation by the Haaretz newspaper found that Amana sometimes operates illegally, playing a major role in establishing unauthorized agricultural outposts.

In recent years, these outposts have become associated with settler violence against Palestinians.

As a cooperative association, Amana is not required to disclose its financial turnover, making its operations opaque.

The Israeli anti-settlement group Peace Now estimates its assets at around 600 million shekels (around $161 million).

The organization collects monthly fees from residents of dozens of settlements, which were previously identified in a Haaretz investigation as one of its main sources of revenue.

These funds, according to the investigation, help finance construction in unauthorized outposts, an area too risky for traditional real estate companies because of potential losses from evacuation orders.

Nine years ago, Amana’s subsidiary Al-Watan made headlines when an investigation by Israeli news site HaMakor revealed it was seizing Palestinian-owned land. using fake documents.

What do US sanctions mean?

In July 2024, Canada imposed sanctions on the Israeli organization for the first time.

However, the US decision raises questions about the seriousness of its enforcement of these sanctions, given its unwavering support for Israel’s actions.

There is also uncertainty about the impact of the sanctions on the organization’s ability to provide services, the fate of its business partners, and the implications for buyers and tenants of housing in the 83 settlements it has established or is working on in the occupied West Bank. .

Sanctions involve severing economic ties with targeted entities in the countries that apply them. Additionally, secondary sanctions may be imposed on those who help circumvent or violate the restrictions.

As a result, Israeli banks and credit card companies have no choice but to cut off all transactions with Amana or risk losing their economic ties with the United States.

Amana maintains economic relationships with many Israeli companies, which could now be affected by the new sanctions. The organization also collaborates with all Israeli banks.

In its statement Monday, the U.S. Treasury Department said Amana and its subsidiary, Binyanei Bar Amana, were involved in the construction and development of settlements and outposts in the West Bank.

“The United States, along with our allies and partners, remains committed to holding accountable those who seek to facilitate these destabilizing activities, which threaten the stability of the West Bank, Israel and the region as a whole,” he said. said Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo. said.

The sanctions freeze the assets of the organization and its subsidiary in the United States and prohibit financial transactions with them by American individuals or institutions.

He stressed that the Israeli organization uses its financial support and infrastructure to expand settlements and confiscate Palestinian land in the West Bank.

Since 1967, Israel has intensified its settlement activities in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Israeli officials openly state that they are trying to annex these areas to Israel.

On the other hand, the Palestinians insist that the West Bank is an integral part of the independent state they envision, with East Jerusalem as its capital, under Israeli occupation since 1967.

In July, the International Court of Justice issued a historic advisory opinion declaring Israel’s decades-long occupation of Palestinian land “unlawful” and demanding the evacuation of all existing settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

*Written by Rania Abu Shamala

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