Facebook ads for Israeli settlements rile Palestinians

The "sponsored posts" marketing homes in the occupied West Bank serve as bitter reminders that Palestinians are often not allowed to build on their own land, reports Dalia Hatuqa.

A Palestinian labourer stands on a construction site in the West Bank Jewish settlement of Givat Zeev, near Jerusalem, on November 21, 2010. Baz Ratner/Reuters

RAMALLAH // Manal Tamimi was on her laptop browsing through Facebook a few weeks ago when something caught her eye: a Hebrew ad in the form of a “sponsored post” marketing homes in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

For some like Ms Tamimi, the ads served as nothing but taunts, or bitter reminders that Palestinians are often not allowed to build on their own land.

“I felt so angry when I saw the ads,” said the 42-year-old Palestinian, who lives in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh. “Two of my cousins were killed by Israeli forces in peaceful protests against land confiscation, and here is this company advertising for homes as if it’s their territory ... We, the rightful owners of the land, can’t even add a room to our existing households.”

There are approximately 150 Israeli settlements in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. The figure does not include “illegal outposts” erected without official Israeli government authorisation.

The luxury residences settlements are being promoted by Facebook on behalf of companies like RE/MAX Israel, an Israeli franchise of a Colorado-based real estate firm. The parent company has franchises worldwide, including Egypt, Kuwait, Bahrain and Lebanon. The Jerusalem-based company offers properties for rent or sale in settlements like Gilo, Giv’at Ze’ev, Pisgat Ze’ev, and Har Homa.

A four-room apartment at the French Hill, for example, is leased for 4,300 shekels (Dh4,500) a month. The site boasts of the apartment’s proximity to the city’s light rail, which Palestinians view as a symbol of Israeli consolidation of land they seek for their future state.

On January 18, a petition was launched by Avaaz, an online campaigning organisation, calling on Facebook to remove the ads in question.

“We were shocked to see ads for illegal Israeli settlements on Facebook. Settlements are a main cause of violence and discrimination in the region,” the petition reads.

The appeal has so far obtained more than 28,000 signatures and has been shared about 10,000 times on social media.

“For Palestinians, seeing settlement ads is a reminder of the pain and humiliation they have to endure as a result of these war crimes,” said Fadi Quran, Avaaz’s senior campaigner in the West Bank in a statement.

The campaign comes in the wake of Israel's decision on January 30 to publish new tenders for 450 settlement units in the West Bank. Palestinians, who recently submitted an application to join the International Criminal Court, said they will refer settlements to the ICC as a possible war crime.

The controversy surrounding RE/MAX dates back as far as September 2013, when the UN Special Rapporteur Richard Falk, submitted a report to the international body’s General Assembly that focused on businesses profiting from Israeli settlements.

The report identified RE/MAX International as one of two companies that “provide knowing assistance that amounts to aiding in the commission of international crimes associated with transferring the citizens of the Occupying Power to the occupied territory”.

It also highlighted that in June 2013, RE/MAX Israel’s website advertised 51 residential properties in nine Israeli settlements.

In November 2014, CodePink, a Washington-based anti-war group, protested outside RE/MAX offices across the United States to voice concerns over the company’s rental and sales of residences in settlements. The group asked the firm to sever ties with its Israeli franchise.

RE/MAX Israel had not responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.

Avaaz has also warned Facebook that the social media site is violating its internal rule book by the promotion and facilitation of “illegal activity” through ads, since settlement-building is deemed unlawful by the international community.

“It is time Mr Zuckerberg adhered to Facebook’s guidelines and remove any ads promoting illegal settlements from the world’s largest social network,” Mr Quran said.

“Sponsored posts” have landed Facebook in hot waters before. In June 2014, the company was taken to task over ads promoting Syrian president Bashar Al Assad during elections.

Facebook removed the ads following pressure from The Syria Campaign, a UK-based advocacy non-profit.