Israel threatens to slap high taxes on Airbnb after it bans West Bank listings
Jewish state says it may sanction the holiday rental company and encourage legal steps against the site following its decision this week
Israel says it will slap high taxes on holiday rental company Airbnb and encourage legal steps against the site over its decision to ban listings from West Bank settlements.
The threats of sanctions ramp up Israel’s fight against a global movement advocating for boycotts over the country’s treatment of the Palestinians.
The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions campaign – known as BDS – has claimed a number of successes in recent years, leading Israel to identify it as a major threat.
Israeli tourism minister Yariv Levin called on Airbnb to reverse what he called a “discriminatory decision” and “disgraceful surrender” to the boycott movement, vowing that Israel would retaliate.
“If you have a policy of discrimination against Israelis you cannot earn money in Israel,” he said.
He also said the government would encourage hosts in West Bank settlements to sue the company to make it “pay” for its decision.
Mr Levin added that Israel would impose other restrictions on Airbnb’s operations in the country.
Airbnb announced on Monday that it would delist 200 properties in coming days and cease its operations in Israeli settlements “that are at the core of the dispute between the Israelis and Palestinians”. The company declined to comment on the Israeli threats.
Israel captured the West Bank and east Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war. Today more than 400,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank, in addition to 200,000 Israelis in east Jerusalem.
Most of the international community considers settlements illegal and an impediment to the creation of an independent Palestinian state. Israel sees the territory as disputed and says the fate of the settlements must be resolved in peace negotiations with the Palestinians.
The boycott movement, which calls for sanctions against settlement products and companies doing business in the West Bank, has made inroads in recent years, helping to tarnish Israel’s international image and prompting it to take retaliatory measures.
Israel has enacted a law banning any foreigner who “knowingly issues a public call for boycotting Israel” from entering the country. It has identified activist groups from around the world whose members can be denied entry upon arrival.
BDS supporters say that in urging businesses, artists and universities to sever ties withIsrael, they are using non-violent means to resist unjust policies towards Palestinians.Israel says the movement masks its motives to delegitimise or destroy the Jewish state.
The Palestinian-led movement claims responsibility for pressuring some large companies to stop or alter operations in Israel or the West Bank, including carbonated drink maker SodaStream, French construction company Veolia and international mobile phone giant Orange.
Airbnb’s decision coincided with the publication of a Human Rights Watch report investigating tourist rental listings in settlements by Airbnb and Booking.com.
Entitled “Bed-and-Breakfast on Stolen Land”, the report said Israeli settlements’ discrimination against Palestinians uniquely violates humanitarian law and Airbnb’s non-discrimination policy.
Most Palestinians must obtain a permit to enter the settlements or Israel proper and typically do so as labourers.
Omar Shakir, Human Rights Watch’s Israel-Palestine director, said that with its threatened sanctions, Israel was prioritising its support for settlements over a thriving tourism industry in Israel proper that relies on services like Airbnb.
If applied, the sanctions could affect lodging costs for thousands of tourists expected to arrive in Tel Aviv next year for the Eurovision Song Contest.
Mr Shakir said the government’s response “reflects the degree to which the government is willing to go, putting the whole country’s interests at stake over its illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank”.
Human Rights Watch, along with Palestinian officials and other rights groups, have for years pressured Airbnb to pull out of Israeli-occupied territory.
Senior Palestinian official Saeb Erekat called Airbnb’s decision an “initial positive step”, and urged the company to extend its decision to Israeli listings in east Jerusalem. The BDS movement echoed that sentiment in a statement on its website.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews said it “condemns the decision by Airbnb to single out the Jewish state of Israel from all the territories in the world that are under dispute. I’m sure that those concerned about the decision will indicate their displeasure through their future choices of accommodation provider.”
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
