West Bank violence networks sanctioned by UK and allies
Britain, Australia, Canada, France and Norway sanctioned six entities and one individual accused of financing, enabling, and carrying out violence by Jewish settlers in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, signaling a move to hold perpetrators accountable and, for the first time, advise against economic activity in illegal settlements; France also banned far-right Israeli minister Bezalel Smotrich and several settler leaders. Israel condemned the measures, while the Palestinians welcomed them. The sanctions follow a surge in West Bank violence since late 2023, with the UN tallying 1,835 settler attacks in 2025 causing seven Palestinian deaths and 832 injuries across about 280 communities, amid continued settlement expansion under Netanyahu’s government.
