The Biden administration imposed sanctions on two Jewish settler outposts in the West Bank on Thursday, the latest move against settlement activity it says is an obstacle to peace between Israelis and Palestinians, claiming they "undermining stability."
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The U.S. Treasury Department added two entities, Moshe's Farm and Zvi's Farm, as well as three Israeli nationals, to its list of sanctioned entities, according to the Office of Foreign Assets Control's website.
The sanctions were imposed on two outposts: Moshe's Farm that was established in 2021 and Zvi's Farm near Halamish in the northern part of the West Bank. Moshe Sharvit, who heads one of the outposts and was already sanctioned by the UK, and Zvi Bar Yosef, who heads the other are also named, as is Neriya Ben Pazi, who heads another outpost.
The sanctions typically freeze any U.S. assets of those targeted and generally bar Americans from dealing with them, but it was not immediately clear how they would affect the outposts.
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Graffiti that reads, in Hebrew, "revenge, death to Arabs," allegedly sprayed by West Bank settlers in the Palestinian village of Turmus Ayya
(Photo: Nasser Nasser / AP)
The State Department said the outposts had been bases for violence against Palestinians.
"There is no justification for extremist violence against civilians or forcing families from their homes, whatever their national origin, ethnicity, race, or religion," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement.
"These West Bank outposts have acted as a base from which to launch violent acts and are illegal even under Israeli law. It is critical that Israel take additional action to stop settler violence and hold accountable those responsible for it. Not just for the sake of the victims of this violence but for Israel's own security and its standing in the world."
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich leader of the far-right Religious Zionist Party said in response that the Biden administration was capitulating to the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement "which aims to blacken the face of Israel and bring about an end to the settlements and the establishment of a Palestinian terror state." Smotrich went on to say the the government stands with the settlements and will fight to reverse this "unacceptable decision."
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Settlers set fire to property in the Palestinian village of Huwara last year after a terror attack there
Axios reported late on Wednesday, citing three U.S. officials, that the outposts would be targeted with sanctions because they were used as a base for attacks on Palestinians by settlers deemed to be extremist.
The administration in February imposed sanctions on four Israeli men it accused of being involved in settler violence in the West Bank, signaling growing U.S. displeasure with the policies of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The administration said at the time that Israel's expansion of settlements in the West Bank was inconsistent with international law, signaling a return to longstanding U.S. policy on the issue that had been reversed by the previous administration of Donald Trump.