US set to sanction Israeli unit over alleged abuses

Benjamin Netanyahu has reacted furiously to reports the US is set to sanction an IDF unit, denouncing the unprecedented move as ‘a moral low.’

Israeli soldiers operating in the Gaza Strip. Picture: AFP.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reacted furiously to reports the US is set to sanction an Israeli military unit over alleged human rights violations, denouncing the unprecedented move as “a moral low.”

The already fragile relations between Jerusalem and Washington have been further tested by the news that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had recommended cuts in military aid to the Netzah Yehuda battalion.

The allegations about violent incidents on the West Bank precede the deadly October 7 attacks by Hamas on southern Israel.

Asked about the reported sanctions, Mr Blinken told reporters his department was conducting investigations under a law that prohibits sending military aid to foreign security units that violate human rights with impunity.

He then added: “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.”

In late 2022 the State Department directed embassy staff in Israel to investigate alleged abuses in the West Bank by the army’s ultra-Orthodox battalion. The battalion has reportedly become home to radical Israeli settlers who haven’t been accepted into other IDF units.

The abuses included a January 2022 incident which a 78-year-old Palestinian American died of a heart attack after being detained, handcuffed and left on the ground for hours in the cold.

Although the allegations precede the Hamas attacks and Israel’s retaliatory war in Gaza, the suggestion of any sanctions against Israeli forces drew an angry response from Mr Netanyahu.

“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 posted late Saturday on social media platform X.

“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.”

אסור להטיל סנקציות על צבא ההגנה לישראל!
**
אני פועל בשבועות האחרונים נגד הטלת סנקציות על אזרחים ישראלים, כולל בשיחות שלי עם בכירי הממשל האמריקני.

בשעה שחיילינו נלחמים במפלצות הטרור, הכוונה להטיל סנקציה על יחידה בצה״ל זה שיא האבסורד ושפל ערכי.

הממשלה בראשותי תפעל בכל האמצעים…

— Benjamin Netanyahu - בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) April 20, 2024

The Axios website, citing three US sources with knowledge of the matter, reported Saturday that Blinken was expected to announce sanctions against the battalion “within days.” It said the sanctions would ban the unit from receiving any US military aid or training.

An earlier report from ProPublica said a special State Department panel had recommended in December that Blinken disqualify several military and police units serving in the West Bank from receiving any US aid.

The latest developments came hours after the US House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a bill to provide $26 billion in new emergency aid to Israel.

AFP