How much influence does the US-sanctioned Israeli settler group Amana really have?

JERUSALEM

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

The U.S. Treasury Department said Monday that Amana only provides support to unauthorized settler outposts used to expand Jewish settlements and seize Palestinian land.

The fact that the sanctions also targeted Amana’s subsidiary called Binyanei Bar Amana raised questions about the future of the organization, which carries out transactions with all Israeli banks.

According to international law, all Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory are considered “illegal”.

For decades, the UN has called on Israel to halt settlement activities, but to no avail as settlements undermine efforts to reach a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

What is Amana?

Amana was founded in 1979 to provide support for the construction of Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, the Gaza Strip, Syria’s Golan Heights, the Galilee, and the Negev in northern and southern Israel.

The organization focuses on building new settlements, expanding existing settlements and developing settlements. Its activities focus on the occupied West Bank.

Since 1989 Ze’ev Hever has served as general secretary.

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

The organization is always keen to avoid media attention. Although his assets are estimated in the 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 newspaper Haaretz.

Amana is considered the primary 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.

By the 1980s, Gush Emunim’s official existence ceased and some members joined right-wing parties at that time.

Amana oversees the construction of settlements, builds houses, rents caravans, buys land on the West Bank and establishes settlements. The website, through its subsidiary Binyanei Bar Amana Ltd, advertises houses for sale in settlements in the occupied West Bank.

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

Illegal operations

An investigation by Haaretz newspaper found that Amana sometimes operated illegally and played a key role in establishing unauthorized agricultural outposts.

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

As a cooperative organization, Amana does not need to disclose its financial turnover, making its operations transparent.

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

The organization collects monthly fees from residents of dozens of settlements, which was previously identified as one of the primary sources of income by an investigation by Haaretz.

According to the investigation, these funds help finance construction in unauthorized outposts, an area that is too risky for standard real estate companies due to potential losses from evacuation orders.

Nine years ago, Amana subsidiary Al-Watan made headlines when an investigation by Israeli news site HaMakor revealed that it had seized Palestinian-owned land using forged 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 its seriousness in imposing these sanctions, given its unwavering support for Israel’s actions.

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

Sanctions include cutting economic ties with target organizations in the countries imposing the sanctions. Additionally, secondary sanctions may be imposed on people who help circumvent or violate restrictions.

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

Amana maintains economic relations with many Israeli companies that may be affected by new sanctions. The organization also cooperates with all Israeli banks.

Amana and its subsidiary, Binyanei Bar Amana, are engaged in building and developing settlements and outposts in the West Bank, the U.S. Treasury Department said Monday.

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

The sanctions freeze the organization’s and its affiliate’s assets in the United States and prohibit American individuals or entities from conducting financial transactions with them.

He emphasized that the Israeli organization uses its financial support and infrastructure to expand settlements and seize Palestinian lands in the West Bank.

Since 1967, Israel has intensified its settlement activities in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Israeli officials openly declare their efforts to annex these territories to Israel.

Palestinians, however, insist that the West Bank is an integral part of their dreamed independent state, whose capital is East Jerusalem and which has been under Israeli occupation since 1967.

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

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala

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