Australia imposes sanctions on Israeli settlers, youth group over West Bank violence

Australia imposed financial sanctions and travel bans yesterday on seven Israeli settlers and a youth group it said had been involved in violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, Reuters has reported.

The unnamed group was responsible for inciting and perpetrating violence against Palestinians, while the settlers had been involved in beatings, sexual assault and torture and in some cases death, explained Foreign Minister Penny Wong.

“We call on Israel to hold perpetrators of settler violence to account and to cease its ongoing settlement activity, which only inflames tensions and further undermines stability and prospects for a two-state solution,” said Wong.

The move by the Australian government comes after allies Britain, the US, Canada and Japan also sanctioned some Israeli settlers in response to the violence in the occupied West Bank.

Israel’s Embassy in Australia said the country condemned acts of violence against Palestinian communities. “Israel is a state of law and will work to bring the extreme minority involved to justice,” said an embassy spokesperson in an email.

Violent acts by Israeli Jewish settlers in the West Bank have increased amid Israel’s war against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip since last October. Settlers are usually protected by the Israel Defence Forces or police while carrying out their attacks on Palestinians and Palestinian property.

Israel has occupied the West Bank of the Jordan River ever since it took control of the territory during the 1967 Six Day War. It has built Jewish settlements there that most countries deem illegal but Israel disputes this.

In an advisory opinion last week, the International Court of Justice declared that the Israeli occupation is unlawful. Although such opinions from the World Court are non-binding, the laws upon which they are based are binding.

Australia considers Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian Territories to be illegal and an obstacle to peace. Indeed, all of Israel’s settlements and settlers are illegal under international law.

READ: The Elders call for bold action by world leaders to end Israel’s unlawful occupation