Netanyahu orders political sanctions on PA officials

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered a halt on all contacts between high-level Israeli officials and their Palestinian Authority (PA) counterparts, Israeli officials said on Wednesday.

The political sanctions, according to Israel’s Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, covered non-security related issues. However, the prime minister exempted his chief peace negotiator Justice Minister Tzipi Livni from them.

The two sides normally cooperate in daily activities across different Israeli and Palestinian ministries, cooperation that is affected by political developments.

On Sunday, at the weekly meeting with his cabinet, Netanyahu pledged to retaliate against the PA’s measures to join international bodies and conventions.

The Israeli sanctions came a few days after Israel announced the construction of 700 new settlement units in occupied East Jerusalem. US Secretary of State John Kerry said that Israel’s continued settlement expansion is the main factor that has plunged the peace process into a crisis.

The Israeli government previously imposed economic sanctions on the PA when it successfully applied to upgrade its status at the UN to become a non-member state in the international organisation.