US imposes sanctions on Israeli settlers

WASHINGTON – AFP

The United States on Thursday imposed sanctions on four Israeli settlers over the violence, in a rare US move against Israelis.

Any assets they hold in the United States will be blocked, with Americans forbidden from financial transactions with them.

“The situation in the West Bank — in particular high levels of extremist settler violence, forced displacement of people and villages, and property destruction — has reached intolerable levels,” President Joe Biden said in an executive order laying the groundwork for US actions.

Matthew Miller, US State Department spokesman, said the action follows on the step “we took in December to impose visa restrictions on dozens of individuals for contributing to violence and instability in the West Bank. There is no justification for extremist violence against civilians, whatever their national origin, ethnicity, or religion. The president and the secretary have both raised our concerns with their Israeli and Palestinian counterparts about the level of violence in the West Bank and stressed that Israel must do more to stop violence against civilians and hold accountable those responsible for it.”