The villa is stunning. The private swimming pool; the lush, landscaped terrace with firepit; the long dining table with its expansive balcony view; the pingpong table; the piano. But the jewel in the crown, according to the Airbnb listing, is the experience of watching the sun rise over the nearby mountains from the luxury of the generous master bedroom.
The villa with views of the Judean mountains is in a settlement located on land seized from Palestinians and considered illegal under international humanitarian law. Only a handful of Palestinians are allowed to enter this, and other, Israeli settlements in the West Bank, usually as labourers with special permits.
Exclusive analysis carried out by the Guardian found 760 rooms being advertised in hotels, apartments and other holiday rentals in illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, on two of the world’s most popular tourism websites.
AirBnb has gone so hard into gentrifying areas that it is now literally genocide.
I tried telling people who were buying homes just to AirBnB them 15 years ago that what they were doing could only possibly lead to a massive rise of income disparity, and thus suffering.
The liberals would give some kind of self pitying, dodge response about how sad it is, but that’s the only way they can get ahead.
At least the conservatives were more straightforward: ‘Do you think I care?’
Landlord lives don’t matter.