Activists protest Israeli settlement funding at Knesset meeting

Key facts

• The Israeli Knesset Finance Committee approved an additional 113 million shekels ($36 million) for settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank.
• This allocation raises the total budget for settlements this year to a record 821 million shekels ($273 million).
• The funds are designated for the development of over 70 archeological and heritage sites in the West Bank.
• Activists stormed the committee meeting to protest the funding decision.
• Finance Committee Chairman Hanoch Milwidsky referred to the protestors as 'worse than terrorists'.

The Israeli Knesset Finance Committee convened on Tuesday to approve a significant financial allocation for the expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. The committee sanctioned an additional 113 million shekels, equivalent to $36 million, for this purpose. This decision escalates the total budget dedicated to settlements for the current year to a record 821 million shekels, or $273 million.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stated that the newly allocated funds would be utilized for the development of more than 70 archeological and heritage sites within the West Bank, marking the first initiative of its kind. During the committee's session, activists entered the hall to voice their opposition to the funding approval. These protestors were subsequently removed from the premises.

Following the incident, Finance Committee Chairman Hanoch Milwidsky characterized the protestors as being 'worse than terrorists.'