The United Nations has released a report, revealing that more than 150 companies, including Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and TripAdvisor, are profiting from Israel's illegal settlement enterprise in the occupied West Bank. The UN human rights office on Friday updated its database, listing 158 firms operating inside settlements deemed unlawful by the International Court of Justice (ICJ). list of 3 itemsend of list While most of the companies are Israeli, the list also includes multinationals registered in the United States, Canada, China, France, and Germany.
British officials fear Donald Trump could recognise Israeli control over illegal settlements on the West Bank in retaliation for the UK, France and others deciding to recognise Palestine. Government insiders believe the US president is considering granting official recognition to the Israeli communities there, which would be a serious blow to achieving a two-state solution. Some believe Trump could raise the prospect as soon as his speech at the UN on Tuesday despite Arab and western leaders having engaged in intense diplomacy to try to ensure this does not happen.
Israel is killing all prospects for peace in the Middle East, Jordan's foreign minister has said amid escalating international outrage over Israel's plans for a new large-scale offensive in Gaza City and its intention to massively expand Jewish settlements in the West Bank. Ayman Safadi made his remarks during a visit to Moscow on the same day that the Israeli defence minister, Israel Katz, approved a plan to conquer Gaza City, an urban area that is home to hundreds of thousands of people in the north of the Palestinian territory.
