The European Union's foreign ministers reached an agreement Monday on a new round of sanctions targeting Israeli settlers accused of violence in the occupied West Bank. The measures also apply to several Hamas leaders, announced EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas.
According to information released by Brussels, this new round of sanctions targets three Israeli settlers and four organizations linked to the settlement movement. The identities of the individuals and groups targeted have not yet been made public.
The dossier had been stalled for several months due to opposition from the previous Hungarian government. But after its electoral defeat last month, EU member states finally managed to reach a compromise and move the text forward.
These sanctions come as several European governments express concern about a rise in violence attributed to Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank. Tensions in the occupied territory have escalated sharply in recent months, alongside the ongoing war in the region.
On the social network X, Kaja Kallas welcomed the agreement reached between the member states. "It was high time to move from deadlock to achieving the goals," she wrote, adding that "extremism and violence have consequences."
The Israeli reaction was swift. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar denounced the decision as "arbitrary and political." According to him, the European Union is sanctioning Israeli citizens and organizations "because of their political opinions and without any basis."
This new decision illustrates the growing tensions between several European capitals and the Israeli government over the issue of settlements in the West Bank, a subject that remains one of the main points of diplomatic friction in the Middle East.
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