A British charity is funding a religious school that is central to plans to expand an illegal Israeli settlement in the Palestinian city of Hebron.
Between 2019 and 2024, Friends of Yeshivat Shavei Hevron sent nearly £200,000 to the school. The last year for which accounts are publicly available on the Charity Commission website—the regulator for England and Wales—is 2024.
In June, construction of a new dormitory for the school was approved after the far-right finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, unilaterally broke a decades-old international agreement on control of Hebron, giving Israel planning authority.
The expansion will increase the population of one of the most extreme Israeli communities in the occupied West Bank, and the only one built in the heart of a Palestinian city.
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“We want British charities to fund peace, not obstacles to peace. This is very wrong,” said Issa Amro, a Palestinian human rights defender from Hebron and co-founder of Youth Against Settlements. “The students at this yeshiva are very aggressive. A new building will mean more violence towards Palestinians, more restrictions, and more Israeli military presence.”
Israel has built extensive systems of militarised separation to isolate several hundred settlers inside Hebron from the rest of the city. Palestinians are banned from some streets entirely, and walls and gates divide those living under Israeli military control from most of the 230,000 residents.
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Israeli settlers on a weekly tour in Hebron, escorted by security forces. Photograph: Mussa Qawasma/Reuters
“For this yeshiva to exist, thousands of Palestinians have already lost their shops, homes, and daily livelihoods in the heart of a Palestinian city,” said Hagit Ofran from the Israeli advocacy group Peace Now. “The new dormitory is a significant development because they are adding more settlers in Hebron, the most extreme settlement, where apartheid is everywhere.”
International and Israeli leaders—including the late US president Jimmy Carter, former Mossad head Tamir Pardo, and former Israeli attorney general Michael Ben-Yair—have said Israel has imposed apartheid in the occupied West Bank, including Hebron.
The Hebron Yeshiva also seeks funding in other countries that consider settlements in occupied Palestine illegal, offering donations “with receipts” in France and Canada. An Israeli crowdfunding tech company, IsraelGives, has also helped channel millions of dollars from US residents to settlements.
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Israeli forces in Hebron. Photograph: Mosab Shawer/Jna Press/Nexpher/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock
The exterior of the new dormitory is already finished, and the Israeli military has built an outpost on the roof of the Palestinian home next door. In 2023, Friends of Yeshivat Shavei Hevron donated £58,200 to the school and claimed more than £2,000 in gift aid from HMRC, according to its accounts. The charity says on its website that it is not registered for gift aid. In 2024, when it had lower turnover and did not file full accounts, it sent £21,360 to the school.
The donations from Friends of Yeshivat appear to go against the charity’s own deed of trust, which refers to educational and charitable work “in the state of Israel,” with no mention of Palestine.
Although Israel has never defined its own borders, the British government last year formally recognised the state of Palestine, on territory that includes Hebron.
The charity was one of 32 registered in England and Wales identified in a letter sent to the commission by Labour MP Melanie Ward on 1 June. She said they had donated at least £28 million to Israeli settlements in recent years.
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Students at the school are said to throw stones at Palestinians from the roof. Photograph: Nadav Weiman/Breaking the Silence
The Guardian understands that the Charity CommissionThe details of the letter were passed on to the Metropolitan Police’s war crimes unit, but no investigation is currently underway.
On June 9, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper told parliament that “charity systems are being misused to channel support to illegal settlements” and that “some evidence suggests rules are being broken.” She added that the Charity Commission had been asked to investigate links to settlements.
In a statement, the commission said it shared Ward’s concerns. It added: “But this remains a complex and contentious issue, touching on broader legal principles about charities’ right to operate and support the most vulnerable in parts of the world where there may be conflict, disputed jurisdiction, or lawlessness.”
Friends of Yeshivat Shavei Hevron provides details of a UK bank account with Barclays for donors to transfer funds. A Barclays spokesperson said it could not comment on individual clients but noted that it “has policies and procedures in place to meet its legal and regulatory obligations – including appropriate due diligence and financial crime controls for charity clients.”
The charity’s contact email was the professional account of Ari Bloom, a trustee and partner at the law firm Solomon Taylor & Shaw. The firm’s switchboard number is listed as the charity’s phone contact, and it is registered to the same north London address used by the law firm. The contact details on the Charity Commission website were updated after the Guardian reached out to Solomon Taylor & Shaw and Bloom for comment.
Friends of Yeshivat Shavei Hevron was also contacted for comment.
The current yeshiva building and its expansion are both located on the edge of the Israeli-controlled area of Hebron. Nadav Weiman, executive director of Breaking the Silence – a group founded by Israeli combat veterans to document military abuses in occupied Palestine – said students throw stones at Palestinians from the roof. Israeli soldiers, who outnumber the settlers, have turned the rooftops of private Palestinian homes into military posts to guard the yeshiva complex.
“If communities fund that [new] dormitory, they are funding more violence, funding the next wave that will bring death to Palestinian families and Israeli families,” Weiman said. “Everything that happens in Hebron first happens elsewhere afterwards.”
Frequently Asked Questions
Here is a list of FAQs about the situation where a UK charity is funding a school at the center of an illegal Israeli settlement
1 What exactly is this illegal settlement youre talking about
Its a community built by Israel on land in the West Bank that is occupied territory Under international law most countries consider these settlements illegal because theyre built on land that doesnt belong to Israel
2 Which UK charity is involved
The specific charity isnt always named in general reports but UK charities registered with the Charity Commission are subject to investigation if they fund activities in settlements The key point is that a UKregistered charity is reportedly funding a school in one of these settlements
3 Why is funding a school in a settlement a big deal
Because by funding the school the charity is helping to sustain and grow the settlement This is seen by critics as supporting an activity that is illegal under international law and that harms the chances of a peaceful twostate solution
4 Isnt it just about helping children get an education
Thats the charitys stated intentionto provide education But the problem is the location Critics argue that you cant separate the good of educating kids from the bad of propping up an illegal community Its seen as normalising the settlement
5 Is this against UK law
Its a grey area UK law doesnt explicitly ban funding settlements but the UK government advises against any economic or financial support for them The Charity Commission can step in if a charitys actions harm its reputation or break its own rules
6 What happens if the charity is found to be breaking rules
The Charity Commission can investigate If they find serious misconduct they can issue warnings freeze the charitys assets or even remove its trustees In extreme cases the charity could be shut down
7 Has this happened before with other charities
Yes Several UK charities have faced scrutiny or had to pull funding from projects in settlements after public pressure or regulator warnings Its a recurring issue
8 Whats the argument for the charity funding this school
Supporters say the charity is purely humanitarian and doesnt take a political stance They argue that denying education to childrenregardless of where they live
