#US / Sanctioned on an Israeli military unit “Netzah Yehuda”
#Blinken and #Biden respond to criticism about ignoring human rights violations by Israel by picking low-hanging fruit, while sending more aid to Israel and ignoring the continued massacre in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
#Axios is reporting that the U.S. is expected to impose sanctions on #IDF "Netzah Yehuda" battalion for human rights violations in the occupied West Bank. This would be the first time the U.S. has sanctioned an Israeli military unit.
The battalion was formed as a special unit for ultra-Orthodox soldiers, but over time became a destination for radical right-wing settlers who were not accepted into other IDF combat units.
One incident that led to the sanctions was the death of 80-year-old Palestinian American Omar Assad, who was arrested, handcuffed, and left in the cold by Netzah Yehuda soldiers, and was later found dead.
State Department has failed to act on internal reports of human rights abuses by Israeli military and police units, despite recommendations from a special panel to deny funding to these units https://kolektiva.social/@oatmeal/112294455860672263
DAWN. “Israel: Netzah Yehudah Battalion Carries Out War Crimes In the West Bank, Including the Killing of Palestinian-American Omar Assad.” DAWN, 29 Nov. 2022, https://dawnmena.org/culprit-netzah-yehuda-battalion/.
The sun rises colourfully over a section of the East Coast Trail near Tors Cove, Newfoundland, bathing the Atlantic Ocean and surrounding landscape in soft light.
Color rendition of a view from a houseboat. Captured just before sunrise on a coastal waterway off the Atlantic Ocean. Amazing quiet when no one is around but you and the birds...