An Airbnb in a war zone? Global holiday rental giant facing legal action over offering stays in 100s of homes in illegal Israeli settlements

Daily Mail​

23-06-2025

Airbnb is facing serious legal heat as human rights groups demand the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA) launch a criminal investigation into the global rental giant over alleged money laundering links to Israeli settlements.
According to a damning new complaint, Airbnb have breached UK anti-money laundering laws by listing more than 300 holiday rentals in illegal Israeli settlements across the West Bank and East Jerusalem - territories widely recognised as occupied under international law.
The complaint, brought forward by the UK-based Global Legal Action Network (GLAN) and Palestinian rights organisation Al-Haq, was officially filed with the NCA on Tuesday.
The groups accuse Airbnb's UK arm of handling profits from crimes committed under international law - namely, the ongoing occupation of Palestinian land.
But Airbnb's operations in the region are no secret. In fact, the company appears on the United Nation's blacklist of companies involved in activities tied to Israeli settlements - areas the UN, and now the International Court of Justice (ICJ), have declared illegal.
In a landmark ruling in July 2014, the ICJ stated Israel 's occupation of Palestinian territory is illegal under international law.
The court further ruled that all states have a duty to end trade and investment that supports the occupation, a damning blow to any company still profiting from it.
Yet, Airbnb appears to have continued to operate in these areas.
Ashish Prashar, former UK senior advisor to the Middle East Peace Envoy and current a special advisor to GLAN on their Palestine Portfolio, told MailOnline: 'By bringing this case against Airbnb, what we're saying is that no one, no business, no company, no entity, should make profits from war crimes'.
Ashish Prashar, former UK senior advisor to the Middle East Peace Envoy and current a special advisor to GLAN on their Palestine Portfolio, told MailOnline: 'By bringing this case against Airbnb, what we're saying is that no one, no business, no company, no entity, should make profits from war crimes'.
As of 2023, there are currently over 300 listed properties up for rent in occupied territories which Al-Haq have displayed in a settlement watch infographic.
Al-Haq's Forensic Architecture Investigation Unit (FAI) conducted an in-depth investigation into Airbnb listings located in illegal Israeli settlements within the occupied West Bank.
'This investigation uncovered how Israeli settlers exploit resources and infrastructure systematically denied to Palestinians, including by using accommodation platforms like Airbnb to sustain their illegal presence on stolen Palestinian land,' the organisation's website reads.
But despite the unraveling controversy, Prashar claims as a business, Airbnb have a choice in who they carry out business with and are willingly choosing to rent out properties on 'stolen land' and with 'an entity that's being accused of genocide right now'.
'The fact that Airbnb are willing to continue the charade, are willing to continue to extract money from war crimes, says a lot about Brian Chesky (Airbnb's CEO), says a lot about the leadership of the company and says a lot about the board and everyone else who's responsible for these decisions,' he said.
Echoing Prashar's concerns, Shawan Jabarin, general director of Al-Haq, said: 'At a time when we are witnessing genocide in Palestine, businesses like Airbnb are providing services that deny the Palestinian people their means of subsistence, threatening the viability of the group.
'Following the finding by the International Court of Justice, that Israel's occupation is illegal, business activities trading in goods and services that maintain the illegal occupation, must come to an end.'
Despite earlier pledges, Airbnb has a patchy track record. In November 2018, following heavy criticism from Human Rights Watch, Airbnb promised to 'act responsibly' and remove all listings in illegal Israeli settlements.
But less than six months later, in April 2019, the company quietly reversed its decision under legal pressure from Israeli hosts and US-based guests.
It instead vowed to donate profits from Israeli settlement listings to humanitarian causes.
An Airbnb spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Airbnb operates in compliance with applicable laws in Ireland, the UK, and the US.
'Since 2019, Airbnb has donated all profits generated from host activity in the West Bank to an international nonprofit, in line with our global framework on disputed territories'.
Critics claim this is not good enough.
'By continuing to let out properties on behalf of Israelis, who illegally occupy on stolen land, or even in some cases stolen homes from Palestinians, [Airbnb] are supporting that occupation. Airbnb listing a property in the West Bank is a breach of that ruling. They're in breach of international law,' Prashar said.
'They are basically saying: "We're cool with the Palestinians being dominated because we're going to make a quick buck of it and donate some of the rest of the money",' he added.
Zainah el-Haroun, a spokesperson for Al-Haq also said the donation 'misses the point entirely'.
'It is not enough to simply donate profits. Companies are morally and legally bound to ensure their activities do not support, maintain or benefit for Israel's unlawful occupation,' Haroun said.
'No charitable donation can undo the underlying human rights harms caused by facilitating any aspect of Israel's unlawful occupation.'
Human rights lawyers have said the donations do not cleanse the company of criminal liability.
'These are the first ever cases to apply anti-money laundering legislation in the UK and elsewhere to business activity in the illegal Israeli settlements,' Gerry Liston, a senior lawyer at GLAN said.
'They demonstrate that senior executives of companies profiting from Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory risk prosecution for a very serious criminal offence'.
Alongside the UK complaint, GLAN has filed a legal challenge in Ireland after police there refused to investigate Airbnb Ireland's role in facilitating listings in the settlements.
GLAN has also sent a 'preservation letter' to Airbnb's parent company in the US - a key move under American legal procedures that could pave the way for discovery of internal documents.
A spokesperson for the National Crime Agency declined to confirm whether it would investigate, telling Middle East Eye: 'The NCA does not routinely confirm or deny the existence of investigations.'
In the Netherlands, a similar case led by the European Legal Support Center (ELSC) has also been brought against Booking.com, which like Airbnb lists properties in the illegal Israeli settlements.
Booking.com has been approached for comment.
ELSC joined GLAN, Sadaka and AL-Haq at the launch of the complaint at a press conference in Dublin on June10, 2025.
But with mounting legal pressure from coordinated actions across the UK, US, and Ireland, Airbnb's global business model is now under unprecedented scrutiny.