The Biden administration is considering sanctions on a battalion in the Israel Defense Force (IDF) following concerns about its actions in the West Bank. The possible punishment came as Israel has been engaged both in the current war in Gaza against the terrorist group Hamas as well as a series of salvos against the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The administration was considering the sanctions on the Netzah Yehuda battalion in the IDF over its alleged actions in the West Bank.
The sanctions would make the battalion ineligible for American aid or training.
“When we’re doing these investigations, these inquiries, it’s something that takes time, that has to be done very carefully both in collecting the facts and analyzing them – and that’s exactly what we’ve done,” said Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
“And I think it’s fair to say that you’ll see results very soon. I’ve made determinations; you can expect to see them in the days ahead,” he said.
If the administration was trying to turn Israelis against Bibi, this will have opposite effect.
Sanctions on the people’s army of Israel during a time of war? Who came up with this inane idea? https://t.co/t5fZkYxAHz
— Jonathan Schanzer (@JSchanzer) April 20, 2024
The United States also sanctioned an associate of Israel’s national security minister as well as two groups responsible for fundraising on behalf of two Israelis accused of violence in the West Bank. The U.S. also sanctioned five Israeli settlers and two settlements earlier in 2023.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote that sanctions “must not be imposed on the Israel Defense Forces.”
“In recent weeks, I have been working against the imposition of sanctions on Israeli citizens, including in my conversations with senior American government officials,” he said on social media.
“At a time when our soldiers are fighting the monsters of terror, the intention to impose a sanction on a unit in the IDF is the height of absurdity and a moral low. The government headed by me will act by all means against these moves,” wrote Netanyahu.
The potential American sanctions on the battalion came as Israel is seeking further international sanctions against Iran’s missile programs. Iran launched more than 300 missiles and drones against Israel earlier this month resulting in no deaths.
