EU foreign ministers approve sanctions against violent settlers in West Bank
European Union foreign ministers on Monday have “unanimously” approved sanctions against violent settlers who harass Palestinians in the West Bank, Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares told reporters after meeting with his EU counterparts in Brussels.
“Today, we have approved, unanimously, the sanctions against the violent settlers that harass the Palestinians in the West Bank,” he said.
This move follows several rounds of sanctions against extremist settlers linked to violent attacks on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
Israel’s Smotrich says one response to EU sanctions: ‘Entrenching’ settlements
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has promised to protect Israel’s illegal settlements after EU foreign ministers approved sanctions against violent settlers in the occupied West Bank.
“There is one holistic, Zionist response to this [EU] declaration – strengthening and entrenching settlements in all parts of the land of Israel,” Smotrich was quoted as saying by The Times of Israel.
The minister – a backer of settlement expansions in occupied Palestinian territory, which are illegal under international law – said the “false BDS campaign against Israel is working”, referring to the pro-Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. Smotrich described it as “a campaign which is designed in its entirety to besmirch the state of Israel”.
Israeli settlers attack villages south of Nablus with military protection
Israeli settlers accompanied by armed forces attacked Palestinian land south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank after dark today. The footage below, verified by Al Jazeera, shows the forces arriving at Burin village. The Wafa news agency says the Madama village in the area was also attacked.
The Palestinian news service cited unnamed local sources as saying that settlers from the illegal settlement of Yitzhar in the occupied West Bank pelted a Palestinian home located between the two villages with stones, shattering its windows, and also damaged several vehicles.
It also said Israeli armed forces made no moves to stop the attacks, and fired live ammunition and tear gas in the direction of Palestinians in the area, but no injuries were reported.
مستوطنون يهاجمون منازل على أطراف قرية بورين جنوب نابلس#حرب_غزة #فيديو pic.twitter.com/pDlLelGf8f
— الجزيرة فلسطين (@AJA_Palestine) March 18, 2024
