Canada imposes new sanctions on illegal Israel settlers

Canada has imposed new sanctions on illegal Israeli settlers in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, highlighting their violation of international law and their role in the increasing violence afflicting the West Bank.

In an announcement on Wednesday by Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mélanie Joly, she revealed that Canada is imposing new sanctions against the Israeli settlers under the Special Economic Measures (Extremist Settler Violence) Regulations, with this new round targeting four individuals and two entities over their involvement in acts of harassment and violence against Palestinian communities in the Occupied Territories.

Those acts include attacks on humanitarian convoys, the dispossession of property, and the displacement of Palestinians, with Joly stating that “Extremist settler violence against Palestinians and their property is unacceptable and has a significant impact on the lives of Palestinians, undermining prospects for peace. We call on Israeli authorities to ensure the protection of civilians and hold perpetrators of such violence accountable.”

In the Canadian government’s statement on the matter and the announcement of the new round of sanctions, it highlighted that the settler attacks are “a long-standing source of tension and conflict in the region”, and that they “undermine the human rights of Palestinians, prospects for a two-state solution and pose significant risks to regional security.”

Reiterating that the illegal settlements in the Occupied Territories are a direct violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention, the Canadian government stated that “Canada continues to oppose the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem and is committed to a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East.”

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