PNN – The US government may impose new sanctions against Israeli settlers for violence in the West Bank, in a move described as a step to reduce public pressure to support the Gaza war on the eve of the US election season.
US President Joe Biden is set to sign an executive order on Thursday to allow for new sanctions against a group of Israeli settlers who are involved in violent attacks against Palestinians.
Axios website, reporting this news, quoted two American officials and claimed that these sanctions may also include Israeli politicians and government officials.
Observers will interpret this action as part of the White House’s policies to reduce the pressure of public opinion in the United States and the world in the midst of intensifying criticism of the Biden administration for its comprehensive support for Israel in the #Gaza_war with more than 26,000 dead and tens of thousands injured.
Since the Israeli operation in Gaza began on October 7, the attacks of settler groups against Palestinians have also intensified. The United Nations Office of Humanitarian Affairs says that since then, nearly 500 attacks have been carried out by Israeli settlers against Palestinians. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet claims that it has taken effective measures to deal with this issue in the past two months, and these measures have reduced the number of violent attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank.
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On the other hand, some observers have rejected this Israeli claim and believe that the settlers’ attacks are carried out with the tacit approval of Netanyahu’s right-wing cabinet. In addition, statistics show that the Israeli army has increased its attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank after the start of the Gaza war, and has killed more than 120 Palestinians so far.
The Axios website claims that Joe Biden has conveyed his concerns about settler violence to Netanyahu’s cabinet several times. In November, he allegedly ordered the foreign and treasury ministers to prepare sanctions against individuals and entities involved in violent attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank. A few weeks later, #Anthony_Blinken, the US Secretary of State, issued a travel ban on some settlers believed to be involved in attacks against Palestinians and placed restrictions on their possible travel to the United States.
Analysts, however, describe these sanctions as symbolic. Patty Kane, an analyst of Israel and Palestine issues based in Washington, told Al Jazeera about a month ago: “These sanctions have not gone far enough in any way. The reason is: What everyone knows is that many of the perpetrators of these extremist attacks are those who have two passports.” He added: “In other words, they are Israeli citizens but they also have an American passport. It means that these sanctions are basically meaningless and they can easily come to America because they are also American citizens. Therefore, they can do their actions with immunity.”
These sanctions are imposed in a situation where public pressure on Biden to try to establish a cease-fire in Gaza has intensified, and he is particularly aware of the consequences of these pressures, especially on his voter base among Democratic Party supporters.
The results of a new poll in America that was conducted some time ago showed that the war in Gaza may have a more negative impact on Joe Biden’s voter base in the US election than his main potential rival, “Donald Trump.”