Who are the four Israeli settlers sanctioned by UK for West Bank violence?
The sanctions follow US designations of settlers enacted on Feb. 1, with the European Union and France also preparing sanctions.
Britain sanctioned four Israeli settlers on Monday who it accuses of intimidating and violently attacking Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
The sanctions follow US designations of settlers Yinon Levy, Einan Tanjil, Shalom Zicherman and David Chai Chasdai enacted on Feb. 1.
The latest designations, announced in a statement by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), come amid an uptick in settler violence in the West Bank, with incidents reaching record levels in 2023, according to UN humanitarian agency OCHA. Between Oct. 7, when Hamas launched its surprise attack against Israel, and Feb. 5, OCHA recorded 506 Israeli settler attacks against Palestinians, resulting in 49 incidents resulting in Palestinian casualties and 399 damaging Palestinian-owned property. OCHA recorded 58 more incidents involving both casualties and damage to property in that period.
The sanctions announced Monday mean that the individuals now cannot get a visa to visit the country and are subject to a UK asset freeze, which prevents any British business or person from working with the sanctioned people. Any funds held in the UK will be frozen.
