The Knesset on Monday evening approved a law that offers a 35-percent tax break on donations to NGOs that encourage settlements in the Palestinian occupied territories. The legislation passed a final reading in the plenum by 33 to 13, after a brief debate. The amendment to an existing law offers an income tax exemption worth up to 35% of the amount of a donation. The bill was designed to direct tax breaks to those who support West Bank settlements.

A Palestinian watches from his shop a group of settlers touring the Old City of Hebron. (Photo: Activestills)

In a meeting earlier this month, Knesset Finance Committee chairman Moshe Gafni (United Torah Judaism) reported that he had received a letter from legal expert Professor Frances Raday, who had advised him that tax-breaks that include West Bank settlements are illegal under international law. In the plenum on Monday, Gafni said Rada “was wrong”. MK Dov Khenin (Hadash), however, urged the parliamentarians not to be fooled. The bill’s true intent was to create a new funding mechanism for West Bank settlements, he said. Israel’s settlement policy is designed to create facts on the ground that would prevent a two-state solution, he said. “If we seek a just peace for both nations, we should oppose it,” Khenin said.