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Possible US sanctions on the ultra-Orthodox battalion of the IDF put the Israeli Government on a war footing

Possible US sanctions on the ultra-Orthodox battalion of the IDF put the Israeli Government on a war footing

Blinken could announce punishments against Netzah Yehuda in the coming days for acts of brutality in the West Bank, according to Axios

April 20 (EUROPA PRESS) –

The Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, and two of the main representatives of ultranationalism in his government, Ministers Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotritch, have in unison condemned the possibility that the United States would sanction, in an unprecedented act, the battalion ultra-Orthodox member of the Israel Defense Forces for possible crimes against Human Rights in the West Bank.

The commotion began this afternoon when the American news portal Axios published, based on information provided by three North American sources close to the situation, that the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, could announce “in a matter of days” sanctions against the Netzah Yehuda.

If announced, these sanctions would prevent the members of this battalion from receiving military aid or training from the US Army in what would be the first application of the law promoted in 1997 by then Senator Patrick Leahy.

Last Thursday, the American portal ProPublica reported that a group of experts from the State Department recommended that Blinken disavow multiple units of the Israeli security forces for crimes against Human Rights in the West Bank.

Although other units will not be sanctioned for having exhibited changes in their behavior, Blinken has the ultra-Orthodox singled out for fomenting the wave of violence against the Palestinian populations in the West Bank before the outbreak of the war with Hamas, on October 7.

This unit is an exception to the law that exempts the ultra-Orthodox from joining the ranks and is largely made up of young extremists, rejected for their violence in the rest of the military units, and has been under investigation by the US since 2022 for possible acts of torture and extrajudicial murders.

NETANYAHU SEES THE POSSIBLE SANCTION AS “THE HEIGHT OF ABSURDITY”

Prime Minister Netanyahu has taken to social media to denounce that such a decision would constitute the “height of absurdity” and has warned the United States that “the Israeli Army cannot be subject to sanctions.”

For Ben Gvir, this possibility constitutes a “red line” and he expects the Israeli Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant, not to submit “to the dictates of the United States” and “to fully support the members of this battalion.”

“If that does not happen, I intend to absorb this battalion into the National Police and the Ministry of National Security” that Ben Gvir himself directs.

Smotrich, Minister of Finance, considers for his part that the imposition of these sanctions “while Israel fights for its existence” against Hamas “is complete madness.”

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