The United States found five Israeli units committed “individual incidents of gross violations of human rights” against Palestinians in the West Bank before the Hamas attack in October, the State Department said Monday.
Four of the units have taken remedial measures, State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters, with consultations ongoing over the fifth unit. The announcement comes after the Biden administration decided to hold off on its decision to blacklist the fifth unit, an infantry brigade of mostly ultra-Orthodox soldiers that has been accused of abuses against Palestinians in the West Bank.
This comes a week after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would fight against anyone who plans to impose sanctions on units of the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF). He made these remarks after reports surfaced that the US is planning to sanction other IDF and police units for alleged rights violations in the West Bank. “If anyone thinks they can impose sanctions on a unit of the IDF — I will fight it with all my strength,” Netanyahu had said in a statement. Earlier this month, the United States announced a series of sanctions linked to Israeli settlers in the West Bank, in the latest sign of growing US frustration with the policies of Netanyahu.
State Department’s decision to publically call out Israel comes as the US is reportedly making a last-ditch effort to prevent The Hauge-based International Criminal Court (ICC) from issuing arrest warrants against PM Netanyahu and other Israeli officials. Diplomatic efforts increased on Sunday and Monday to reach a long sought-after truce and hostage-release deal in Gaza as global opposition to the humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian territory has also been growing in the wake of the looming invasion of Rafah.
According to an internal State Department memo, some senior US officials have advised State Secretary Antony Blinken that they do not find “credible or reliable” Israel’s assurances that it is using US-supplied weapons, in accordance with international law. Under a National Security Memorandum (NSM) issued by President Joe Biden in February, Blinken must report to Congress by May 8 whether he finds credible Israel’s assurances that its use of US weapons does not violate US or international law.
(With agency inputs)
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