The U.S. State Department senior official announced that President Joe Biden’s administration has informed Israel that Washington will soon impose a visa ban on extremist Israeli settlers who engage in violence against Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken conveyed to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and members of the Israeli war government that the U.S. would initiate its measures against an undisclosed number of individuals.
The West Bank, an area Palestinians aim to establish their state, has witnessed a significant escalation in violence amid Jewish settlement expansion and a near decade-long halt in the U.S.-sponsored peace process.
The level of violence, highest in over 15 years, intensified notably following Israel’s engagement in a new war in the Gaza Strip, in response to the bloodiest attacks in Israel’s history carried out by Hamas last month.
Israeli government spokesman Elon Levy, when asked to comment, did not directly address the issue but stated that Israel strongly condemns any acts of violence or rioting, or attempts by individuals to take the law into their own hands.
The United States has repeatedly expressed concern about the rising violence in the West Bank, stressing the need to stop it. In a Washington Post op-ed published on November 18, President Biden threatened action against the perpetrators.
Biden emphasized the importance of halting violence by extremists against Palestinians in the West Bank and holding them accountable, stating the U.S. is prepared to take specific actions, including banning visas for extremists attacking civilians.
The State Department official, requesting anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, mentioned that the U.S. wants Israel to prosecute the offenders, which has not yet occurred.
The official added that the visa ban could be implemented in the next few weeks.
United Nations data indicate that the number of daily attacks by settlers more than doubled following last month’s Hamas attack that ignited the war.
