Over the past 15 years, a British-born Israeli immigration consultant has facilitated the relocation of more than 6,000 Jewish people to Israel, much of that work carried out during his tenure with a controversial organization that openly advertises residency opportunities in illegal Israeli settlements across the occupied West Bank and Golan Heights. As Israel continues to expand its network of unauthorized settlements and outposts in Palestinian-claimed territories, a growing number of Israel-aligned organizations have stepped up efforts to recruit Jewish migrants from across the globe to move to these occupied areas.
One of the most high-profile groups engaged in this work is Nefesh B’Nefesh (NBN), an organization that facilitates Jewish immigration to Israel—known widely as Aliyah—while actively promoting settlement in occupied territories. The group’s official website hosts dedicated informational pages for dozens of illegal settlements, complete with local community contact details for prospective migrants interested in relocating. For example, NBN spotlights the Gush Etzion settlement bloc in the West Bank, profiling individual settlements including Tekoa. In its promotional material for Tekoa, the organization notes the settlement’s population growth followed the opening of a new bypass route that circumvents nearby Palestinian communities, a framing that omits any discussion of the route’s seizure of private Palestinian land.
NBN also promotes Katzrin, a settlement built on illegally occupied Syrian land in the Golan Heights, marketing the community only for its “breathtaking surrounding views” while failing to disclose its status on occupied territory. Other settlements across the West Bank receive similar misleading promotion: Elkana is billed as a “well-situated community in the center of Israel,” while the Mateh Binyamin cluster of illegal outposts is described as “one of the most beautiful regions in Israel. Neither location is acknowledged to sit outside of Israel’s internationally recognized 1948 armistice lines. To further recruit for Mateh Binyamin, NBN has hosted a 2021 recorded webinar on its website featuring US-born settlers encouraging international Jews to relocate to the area.
The organization’s informational page for Mitzpeh Yericho frames relocation to the settlement as part of a “pioneering effort to build up Eretz Yisrael [the land of Israel],” noting that most residents live in permanent housing while others occupy temporary structures including mobile homes and modular concrete units—structures frequently used by settlers to establish new unauthorised outposts on seized Palestinian land. NBN also promotes expansion of the Shiloh settlement, highlighting “several construction initiatives” underway to “expand its borders,” language that directly refers to the seizure of additional adjacent Palestinian territory for settlement growth.
While the total number of international migrants NBN has assisted to move into illegal occupied territories remains undisclosed, the group’s own page for the West Bank settlement of Efrat offers a glimpse: it notes “thousands of NBN Olim [immigrants]” currently reside in the unauthorized settlement. When contacted for comment, NBN has attempted to distance itself from promotional activity, claiming its settlement pages are “for educational and informational purposes only” and that it “does not endorse, recommend, or promote any specific community.” Despite this disclaimer, the organization’s consistent terminology and framing treats both the Golan Heights and the occupied West Bank as integral territory of the state of Israel, contradicting its formal claims.
NBN primarily focuses on facilitating Aliyah for Jewish migrants from North America (the United States and Canada), but previously maintained operational activities in the United Kingdom, where it was led by the UK-born Dov Newmark, the subject of this investigation. Public records and Newmark’s own LinkedIn profile confirm he served as NBN’s “Director of UK Aliyah” from 2009 through 2023. In a May 2024 interview with British-Israeli podcaster David Goodwin, Newmark reflected positively on his 15-year tenure with the organization, saying “Nefesh really put all the information together on one site, which was amazing,” calling his time with the group “Amazing 15 years. Great organisation.”
Newmark confirms that during his 15 years working on Aliyah, first with NBN and now through his private consultancy, he has assisted more than 6,000 Jewish people in relocating to Israel. It remains unclear whether any of these migrants were assisted to move to illegal settlements: neither Newmark nor NBN responded to multiple requests for comment from Middle East Eye (MEE) for this investigation. It also remains unclear exactly when NBN ceased formal operations in the UK: Newmark claims the organization exited the UK market around 2018, but a UK-registered charitable entity linked to the group, Friends of Nefesh B’Nefesh Limited, was only formally dissolved in July 2024, and NBN listed a UK contact number on its website through 2021.
When contacted by MEE, a spokesperson for the UK Foreign Office reaffirmed the UK government’s longstanding official position on the legality of Israeli settlements, but declined to comment specifically on Newmark’s activities. The spokesperson stated, “The UK is clear that settlements are illegal under international law and jeopardise prospects for peace. We oppose further settlement expansion and strongly advise against conducting any economic and financial activities in illegal Israeli settlements.”
Raised in northeast London, Newmark became active in Bnei Akiva, a Zionist Jewish youth movement that frames Aliyah as the “ultimate expression of its ideology” and organizes gap year programs for international Jewish youth in Israel, from his teenage years. In 2008, Newmark himself relocated to Israel with his wife and three children, and has resided in Modiin, within Israel’s recognized borders, ever since. After leaving NBN in 2023, he launched his own independent Aliyah consultancy business called Make Aliyah Easy, which offers free support services to British Jews looking to relocate to Israel, including pre-migration planning, relocation logistics assistance, and post-arrival integration support. Instead of charging clients directly, Newmark earns commission from referring clients to English-speaking service providers ranging from moving companies to currency exchange services. MEE was unable to verify which providers Newmark works with, or whether any of those providers operate in occupied territories.
To grow his new business, Newmark has partnered with multiple Israeli and UK-based organizations, including Yad L’Olim, Olim Paveway, UK shipping firm Stephen Morris, and London-based investment firm Raymond James, hosting informational webinars featuring Israeli real estate agents and immigration experts to guide prospective migrants. Publicly, all residential communities Newmark promotes on his own platforms sit within Israel’s internationally recognized borders, with no public mention of assistance for relocation to illegal settlements. But a newly announced partnership has raised new questions about his work. In June 2026, Newmark publicized a formal partnership with Shivat Zion, an Israeli Aliyah organization that launched in 2025 marketing itself as “the UK’s Only Free Aliyah Support Charity” despite never completing registration with the UK Charity Commission.
Earlier in 2026, investigative outlet Declassified UK exposed that Shivat Zion had offered to assist a UK citizen with relocation to an illegal West Bank settlement, prompting two UK Labour Members of Parliament to call for official sanctions against the group. In response to the expose, a Shivat Zion representative posted a video claiming the organization operates “under Israeli law” but did not directly deny the allegations that it facilitates migration to occupied territories, stating only: “If someone has decided on a specific city in Israel, we help them.”
While Israel enshrines its settlements in the West Bank as legal under its own domestic law, this designation has no standing under international law. All Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian and Syrian territory are universally recognized as illegal under international law, and are also unlawful under British law. Newmark has publicly described his arrangement with Shivat Zion as a partnership, but the organization’s website formally lists him as its Senior Aliyah and Strategic Consultant for the UK. It remains unclear whether he works as an employee, earns commission, or operates as a freelance contractor for the group. What is clear is that Newmark serves as Shivat Zion’s primary public point of contact in the UK: no other UK-based Aliyah consultants are listed on the organization’s website. Shivat Zion also declined to respond to multiple MEE inquiries about its UK operations, its activity in occupied territories, and its partnership with Newmark, and did not rule out assisting migration to illegal settlements.
Despite the ongoing controversy over links to organizations that promote settlement in occupied territories, Newmark remains unapologetic about his work and continues to expand his Aliyah-focused business. “If you think about it, Israel is a country made up of Olim [immigrants],” Newmark told Goodwin in the 2024 interview. “Israel survives and thrives on Aliyah.” Newmark argues the founding and existence of the state of Israel deserves celebration, noting “it didn’t come easy.” He also shared that his daughter was serving in the Israeli navy at the time of the interview, and that he regularly volunteers at Israeli army bases, cooking barbecue meals for active-duty soldiers. Despite widespread documentation of human rights violations committed by the Israeli military and ongoing international accusations of genocide in its military campaign in Gaza, Newmark says he finds the experience of volunteering with the military inspiring. “You can see the determination in those soldiers to go in there and do what they need to do. They’re so positive and the morale is so high, you can’t help but be sucked into that positivity,” he said.
Newmark also says he expects Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza will drive an increase in Aliyah, a trend he says he is prepared to support. “There’s always a spike in Aliyah after a conflict,” he explained. “And this will be no different. There will be a spike. […] And I’m excited to help people fulfil and realise their dream of moving and making Aliyah.”
This report was produced by Middle East Eye, an independent media outlet focused on original coverage and analysis of the Middle East, North Africa and surrounding regions.