The West introduces sanctions against settlers on the West Bank – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries

For months, the world’s eyes have been on Gaza. But in the Palestinian West Bank, on the other side of Israel, it has not been quiet either. The West Bank has been occupied by Israel since 1967. There are constant reports that Israeli settlers living there illegally have become bolder and more violent. – There is no doubt that this is the worst period ever in the history of the occupation, says Shai Parnes, spokesperson for the Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem, to news. The scale of the violence has prompted the United States to do something it has never done before. Abuses against Palestinians in the West Bank This year, Israel has demolished 780 Palestinian homes and buildings in the West Bank and displaced over 1,500 people, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA). 228 Palestinians in the West Bank were killed in the first half of 2024. 51 were children, writes the Norwegian Refugee Council. In the first six months of the year, 659 settler attacks on Palestinians have been documented, according to the Norwegian Refugee Council. In comparison, 598 were documented in the whole of 2023. In the Jordan Valley, settlers have displaced 18 small Bedouin communities from their homes, Haaretz wrote. Got worse after the Hamas attack – The situation was always pretty bad in the West Bank. But since 7 October, it has become much more brutal and radicalised, says Parnes, referring to the bloody Hamas-led attack against civilians in Israel which was the start of the Gaza war. He says that the settlers are behind more and more attacks against Palestinian civilians. At the same time, Israel insists on demolishing Palestinian homes which it claims are illegal. On 13 April, settlers had set fire to the cars and houses of Palestinians in al-Mughayyir in the West Bank. Settlers stormed the village after a 14-year-old boy was killed. One Palestinian man lost his life in the attack. Dozens were injured. Photo: Nasser Nasser / AP This year, over 200 Palestinians, including 51 children, have been killed in the West Bank, according to the Norwegian Refugee Council. Parnes says that almost all Palestinians in the West Bank are affected, directly or indirectly. And he is absolutely clear about one thing: This is supported by Israel: – We see the settler violence as part of the violence that the state of Israel is behind. It is just an unofficial branch of Israel’s apartheid regime to subjugate as much land as possible and expel the Palestinians, says Parnes. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has previously rejected accusations that they practice apartheid. Spokesperson Mark Regev has admitted that Israel has different legislation for Palestinians and Israelis, but that this is necessary as a result of the occupation. Regarding the accusation that the state of Israel supports the settlers, the UN’s international court, the International Criminal Court, has recently determined that Israel contributes to Israelis settling in the West Bank. The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded with a brief statement rejecting the ICJ’s conclusions. – The Jewish people are not occupiers in their own land, not even in our eternal capital Jerusalem, or in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank), Netanyahu wrote on X. He believes that Israel must be allowed to defend itself, also in the West Bank. – No absurd statement from The Hague can change historical truths or the legal right of Israelis to live in their own communities in our ancestral homes, he added. ICJ and Israel on the settlers The International Criminal Court ICJ recently issued a legal assessment on Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and its consequences. The court says, among other things: “There is extensive evidence of Israel’s policy of providing incentives for Israeli persons and businesses to move to the West Bank, in addition to the development of industry and agriculture by the settlers.” “Israel regularly legalizes outposts that have been established in violation of national Israeli law. [ …] The Court believes that through this practice Israel encourages the transfer of parts of its own civilian population to the West Bank, in violation of paragraph 6 of Article 29 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.” The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the following comment on the court’s assessment: “The Jewish people are not occupiers of their own land, including our eternal capital Jerusalem, or in Judea and Samaria, our historic homeland. No absurd judgment from The Hague can undermine this historical truth or the legal right of Israelis to live in their own communities in the land of our forefathers.” Eide supports the sanctions The number of settlers has increased steadily since Israel’s military occupation of the West Bank began after the Six-Day War in 1967. This winter, the United States began to introduce economic sanctions against the settlers for the first time. This means that they cannot use American payment solutions and financial services. Some have money in foreign accounts that are being frozen. Several Western countries have followed suit. Canada, the United Kingdom and earlier this week the EU, which imposed sanctions on five settlers and three settler organisations. – They are responsible for serious and systematic human rights violations against Palestinians in the West Bank, the EU wrote. Norway will probably do the same, said Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide (Ap) to news earlier this week. – We completely agree that sanctions must be imposed on these concrete settlers, said Eide. But there is little to suggest that the sanctions have so far slowed down the settlers. On the contrary. – The people are with us – They tried to weaken us, but we ended up getting stronger, Yinon Levi told the AP news agency in June. He is among the settlers on the US sanctions list. Levi is in his early 30s and runs an illegal farm in an outpost in Mount Hebron in the south of the West Bank. From there, he organizes and directs attacks on Palestinians, according to the US sanctions overview. Yinon Levi at his farm in Mount Hebron on May 12. Levi is behind several attacks on Palestinian civilians, the EU and the US believe. The EU claims that, among other things, he causes his dogs to attack Palestinian shepherds. Photo: Maya Alleruzzo / AP Levi denied the accusations of broadcaster Kan Radio, according to the Times of Israel. Since the sanctions were introduced, Levi has received help and money from supporters and supporters locally and internationally. – The Israeli people are with us. They understand that what we do is important, he said. A female on Yinon Levi’s farm Meitarim in the south of the West Bank. Levi says he has received a lot of support to run his farm after the sanctions were introduced. Photo: Maya Alleruzzo / AP Gaining sympathy The criticism of Israel’s warfare in Gaza and the sanctions against the settlers in the West Bank have caused strong reactions in Israeli society. Many feel that Western allies sided with Hamas, says Ami Pedahzur. He heads the Institute for Strategic Research at Haifa University in Israel. He emphasizes that the attack on 7 October was a violent national trauma in Israel. Israeli settlers Around 700,000 Israeli settlers live in the Palestinian West Bank, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA). Around 230,000 live in East Jerusalem. The rest live in the approximately 300 towns, villages and outposts scattered throughout the territory. The number of settlers shot up after Israel occupied the West Bank after the Six-Day War in 1967. Some are ideologically and religiously motivated. They believe that the Jews have a right to the Palestinian territories. Other settlers are more secular and live there because it brings economic benefits. In 2016, the UN Security Council decided that the settlements are in violation of international law. On 19 July, the International Court of Justice ruled that the Israeli settlers are operating illegally in the West Bank and must leave the area. Sources: Great Norwegian Lexicon – I think this was a defining moment in Israel’s history. It is clearly the most important political event in my lifetime, says Pedahzur to news. – Immediately condemning Israel after such a catastrophic, genocide-like attack is not something that makes Israelis turn against the world. Many feel that no one understands them, that the world is anti-Semitic and that they are alone, he says. He emphasizes that he does not express his own opinions, but explains what is happening in society. And he believes support for the settlers has increased. Burnt-out cars remain after an attack on the village of Burqah east of Ramallah in the West Bank. Residents of the village say settlers were behind the attack. Photo: JAAFAR ASHTIYEH / AFP – I think that the sanctions and condemnation of Israel, and especially the settlers, increase people’s sympathy for them. Because they are now victims, says Pedahzur. Looking to God For deeply religious settlers and Israelis, the development is extra significant, according to Pedahzur. Orthodox Jews are waiting for the Messiah to come to earth and gather all Jews in the “Land of Israel” – Eretz Israel. Some deeply religious Jews believe that this is what we are now witnessing. Many settlers are deeply religious. They believe that they have a right to Palestinian lands. Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg / AP – It is heartbreaking, says Pedahzur and continues: – The messianic movement is growing ever stronger. Which leaves ordinary people, Israelis and Palestinians, who are not so different from each other, caught in a bloody conflict, with little hope for the future. But there may be several reasons why the sanctions do not have the consequences that had been envisaged. An unusual “softening” American sanctions can have major consequences for those affected. Financial institutions and banks in other countries often follow suit. As a result, you can be banned from large parts of the world’s financial market. The settlement of Neve Daniel south of Bethlehem on the West Bank seen from the air on 12 March. Photo: Dedi Hayun / Reuters But this time the US did something new. This spring, the Ministry of Finance sent out a letter. It states that the US will not interfere in Israeli banks’ processing of transactions related to necessary living expenses of persons and organizations on the sanctions lists. In practice, this helps to ease the pressure on the settlers, says Gonzalo Saiz. He researches sanctions at the British think tank Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). – It is unusual for the United States to tell another country that its citizens who have been subject to sanctions will not lose access to their money in financial institutions that are not American, says Saiz to news. Gonzalo Saiz researches sanctions at RUSI. He says that the American sanctions against the settlers do not hit as hard as is usual. Photo: The Royal United Services Institute – The US always tries to exploit the power it has in the international financial market, he continues. The reason, he believes, is linked to the US and Israel’s special relationship and alliance. At the same time, the United States is under pressure. President Joe Biden and the government want to show that they are cracking down on violations of human rights. – This is a way for the US to demonstrate its position when it comes to violence against civilians and human rights violations that they must stand up against. But this is very sensitive because they are introducing sanctions against the citizens of a state they are allied with, says Saiz and continues: – In order to achieve this art of balance and maintain diplomatic ties with Israel, they have to soften how hard the sanctions hit. Interested in foreign affairs? Listen to the foreign affairs editor’s recent podcast: Published 21.07.2024, at 11.33



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