WASHINGTON (Dispatches) – A New York State assembly member has introduced legislation to stop charities from sending millions of dollars to the occupied territories to support settlement activity, as Zionist settlements have been deemed illegal under international law.
The legislation, “Not on our dime!: Ending New York Funding of Israeli Settler Violence Act,” was introduced by state assembly member Zohran Mamdani, the third Muslim in the New York State assembly.
The legislation would give the state attorney general authority to sue and dissolve not-for-profit organizations that are found to be using their tax-deductible donations to support organizations funding illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank.
It would also give Palestinians harmed by settler organizations funded by New York-based charities the right to seek damages in American courts.
“Charities registered in New York State currently send more than $60 million dollars a year in tax-deductible donations to aid and abet Israeli settlements. This is done on our dime as New Yorkers,” Mamdani told Middle East Eye.
“This legislation puts an end to that and makes explicit that subsidizing violence and activities outlawed by the Geneva Convention is not, and should not be considered, charitable giving. It’s past time for New York to catch up to international law.”
He said that while this issue is important to him as a Muslim, as his faith informs his fight to ensure justice for all people, this is not a bill motivated by religion.
“It is a bill motivated by a desire that New York State stop subsidizing human rights violations through the conferring of charitable status to organizations such as these,” he said.
“Too often, we see an exception drawn when it comes to Palestine - whether it be in our policies or the application of them. This makes it clear that our belief in human rights is universal, without exception.”
The Central Fund of Israel, an organization registered in New York, is one of the most significant sources of support, sending millions annually to the Zionist regime.
In 2019, the UN special coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process said that Zionist settlement activities are “a flagrant violation under international law”.
In February, the occupying regime granted retroactive authorization to nine settler outposts in the occupied West Bank and announced the construction of new homes within established settlements.
The UN Security Council then issued a formal statement condemning the regime’s plan to expand settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, after the United States made a rare decision to support the motion.