"In Tel Aviv, the new year began with a protest by a violent extremist settler group that has faced UK sanctions since October 2024. The trigger was a new Israeli banking directive, rushed out to placate Israel's hardliners, that they said did too little to shield Israelis from international sanctions."
"That lesson carries immediate relevance as governments now have an opportunity to give teeth to their long-standing opposition to the E1 settlement plan—a move that would fracture the territorial contiguity of the West Bank and the viability of a Palestinian state. The tenders, which seek bids from developers, call for proposals to develop 3,401 housing units in E1."
"The imminent advancement of the E1 settlement plan will test whether nations are prepared to enforce their red lines or acquiesce to US-backed impunity for Israel. Smotrich, who oversees the West Bank settlement planning body that approved the E1 settlement plan, has simultaneously waged war on the settler sanctions movement since its inception two years ago."
International sanctions targeting extremist Israeli settlers are proving effective despite the Trump administration's reversal of Biden-era sanctions. A January protest by a UK-sanctioned settler group against new Israeli banking directives reveals the impact of these measures. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, himself facing sanctions from Australia, Canada, and the UK, has actively opposed enforcement efforts. The E1 settlement project, which would undermine Palestinian state viability, faces imminent advancement with housing unit tenders expected to be awarded March 16. Nations now have an opportunity to enforce their stated opposition through targeted sanctions, testing whether governments will maintain red lines or accept US-backed impunity for Israeli settlement expansion.
#israeli-settlements #international-sanctions #palestinian-statehood #e1-settlement-expansion #extremist-settler-movement
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]