Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
The Official Journal of the European Union published the names of four individuals and two entities of extremist settlers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and they were included in the European Union’s global human rights sanctions regime. According to a European statement issued in Brussels, the individuals and entities included in the list are responsible for serious human rights violations against Palestinians, including torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, and for violating the right to property and private and family life of Palestinians in the West Bank.
The entities listed are Lehava, a far-right group that believes in Jewish superiority, and the Hilltop Youth, an extremist youth group made up of members known for committing acts of violence against Palestinians and their villages in the West Bank. Two leadership figures in the Hills Youth, Meir Ettinger and Elisha Yereid, are also included. They both participated in bloody attacks against Palestinians in 2015 and 2023.
The designations also include Neria Ben Bazi, who has been accused of repeatedly attacking Palestinians in Wadi al-Siq and Deir Jarir since 2021, and Yinon Levy, who has been involved in multiple acts of violence against villages surrounding his residence in the illegal outpost of Metarim. .
With the inclusion of the list, restrictive measures under the EU's global human rights sanctions regime now apply to 108 natural and legal persons and 28 entities from a range of countries.
Those included in the sanctions regime are subject to freezing their assets, and it is prohibited to provide funds or economic resources, directly or indirectly, to them or for their benefit. In addition, the travel ban to the European Union applies to natural persons on the list.
The European Council previously called, in its conclusions on March 21 and 22, 2024, for an immediate cessation of violence in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and to ensure safe access to the holy places. The European Council strongly condemned extremist settler violence, stressing the need to hold its perpetrators accountable. The Council called for accelerating work on adopting relevant targeted restrictive measures. The European Council also condemned the Israeli government's decisions regarding the expansion of illegal settlements throughout the occupied West Bank, and urged Israel to reverse these decisions. The relevant legal measures have been published in the Official Journal of the European Union.