Israeli leaders have said they will strongly oppose sanctions against any Israeli military unit for alleged human rights abuses following media reports that Washington plans to impose its first sanctions against the country’s armed forces. .
The United States will impose sanctions on Israel’s Netzah Yehuda Order over its treatment of Palestinians in the West Bank, Israeli media reported.
What is Netzah Yehuda?
The Netzah Yehuda Order was established in 1999 to “accommodate” the religious beliefs of ultra-Orthodox Jews and other religious nationalists serving in the military.
The government established the order as a way for these groups to serve in the military while allowing them to maintain their religious practices, such as giving them time for prayer and study and limiting their communications with female soldiers.
Why is the unit being blamed?
The United States called for a criminal investigation after Netzah Yehuda soldiers were accused of involvement in the death of a 78-year-old Palestinian-American, Omar Asad, who died of a heart attack in 2022 after being arrested and then found abandoned in a building.
An autopsy conducted by the Palestinians concluded that Assad died of a heart attack caused by the stress of the abuse he suffered.
The case had attracted unusual attention because of his dual citizenship, his age and a request by the State Department for an investigation into his death.
The Israeli military said soldiers temporarily gagged him with a strip of cloth and tied his hands with a cable because he refused to cooperate.
Battalion commander Netzah Yehuda was reprimanded and two officers were dismissed, but Israeli military prosecutors decided not to bring criminal charges because they said the soldiers’ mistakes were unrelated to Assad’s death.
The military attorney general said a military medical official ruled that it was impossible to determine whether his death was specifically caused by the soldiers’ conduct and that the soldiers could not have known his medical condition.
There have been several other incidents in recent years, some of which have been captured on video, where Netzah Yehuda soldiers are accused, or have been accused, of mistreating Palestinian prisoners.
The battalion operated primarily in the West Bank before being withdrawn from the region in late 2022 following US criticism. The unit has been serving in Gaza lately.
What would the sanctions mean?
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said on Friday that he had made “decisions” regarding allegations that Israel violated a set of US laws that prohibit military aid to individuals or security forces who commit serious human rights abuses.
The Leahy Laws, named by then-Senator Patrick Leahy in the late 1990s, prohibit military aid to individuals or units of the security forces who commit serious human rights violations and have not been brought to justice.
Blinken said there could be an announcement “very soon.”
How did Israel respond?
Israeli leaders reacted angrily to reports of sanctions.
Netanyahu yesterday, Sunday, called the possibility of sanctions against the unit “the height of absurdity and moral decay” as Israel fights in Gaza against Hamas. He said his government would “act with all means” against any move.
Benny Gantz, a minister who sits on the country’s war council, spoke with Blinken on Sunday and asked him to “rethink the potential decision.”
The Israeli military said the Netzah Yehuda Battalion is an active combat unit that operates in accordance with the principles of international law.
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