The Foreign Secretary has today announced further sanctions on
extremist Israeli groups and individuals for violence in the West
Bank.
Today's package includes two groups known to have supported,
incited and promoted violence against Palestinian communities in
the West Bank, as well as four individuals responsible for
perpetrating human rights abuses against these communities.
The measures follow an unprecedented rise in settler violence in
the West Bank over the last year, with the UN recording at least 800
incidents since October.
Hilltop Youth, one of the groups sanctioned today, is a hardline
nationalist Israeli youth group which establishes illegal settler
outposts across the West Bank with the stated mission of
expelling all Palestinians from the Occupied Territories. Lehava
is also sanctioned today for facilitating, inciting, and
promoting violence against Arab and Palestinian communities.
Foreign Secretary said:
Extremist settlers are undermining security and stability and
threatening prospects for peace.
This latest package of sanctions targets two groups leading these
attacks, and four individuals who are directly responsible for
egregious violence against Palestinian civilians.
The Israeli authorities must clamp down on those responsible. The
UK will not hesitate to take further action if needed, including
through further sanctions.
The four individuals sanctioned today for egregious human rights
abuses against Palestinian communities are:
- Noam Federman: a radical settler activist and former leader
and spokesperson of the now-defunct Kach party, that espoused
overtly racist and violent policies. He has trained settler
groups to commit acts of violence against Palestinians and how to
avoid repercussions from the Israeli state.
- Neria Ben Pazi: is responsible for illegally constructing
three illegal outposts between 2015 and 2023 and has supported
and participated in acts of violence and displacement of Bedouin
and Palestinian communities in the West Bank.
- Eden Levi: has been documented on multiple occasions as
taking part in assaults and intimidation of Palestinians, as part
of a wider intimidation campaign aiming to drive their population
out of the area. As recently as 12 October 2023, he was involved
in an incident during which Palestinian villagers were beaten and
sexually assaulted.
- Elisha Yered: is an unofficial spokesperson for Hilltop
Youth. He has a history of making inflammatory statements
inciting religious hatred and violence, including justifying the
killing of Palestinians on religious grounds, and calling for the
takeover of Palestinian land and the expulsion of Palestinians
from the West Bank.
Today's measures impose financial restrictions on the entities
and individuals, and travel restrictions on the individuals.
Further information:
- Today's sanction package is the second UK package targeting
persons involved in settler violence in the West Bank. The first
tranche was announced by the FCDO on
12 February.
- Asset freeze: An asset freeze prevents any UK citizen, or any
business in the UK, from dealing with any funds or economic
resources which are owned, held or controlled by the designated
person. It also prevents funds or economic resources being
provided to or for the benefit of the designated person. UK
financial sanctions apply to all persons within the territory and
territorial sea of the UK and to all UK persons, wherever they
are in the world.
- Travel ban: A travel ban means that the designated person is
an excluded person under section 8B of the Immigration Act 1971,
and must be refused leave to enter or to remain in the United
Kingdom (and any leave given to a person who is an excluded
person is invalid).
