US announces visa bans after warning Israel on West Bank settler violence

The US Department of State has said that it will impose visa restrictions on Israeli settlers involved in undermining peace, security or stability in the occupied West Bank.

The US Department of State has said that it will impose visa restrictions on Israeli settlers involved in undermining peace, security or stability in the occupied West Bank.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the move on Tuesday, one day after the State Department said that Israel has not taken sufficient steps to address settler attacks that have driven many Palestinians off their land.

President Joe Biden and other senior US officials have warned repeatedly that Israel must act to stop violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank, which has increased since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel.

Blinken did not announce individual visa bans, but department spokesman Matthew Miller said the bans would be implemented starting Tuesday and would cover “dozens” of settlers and their families, with more to come. He did not give a number and didn’t identify any of those targeted due to confidentiality reasons.

Israeli settler violence has long targeted Palestinian communities in the West Bank, and the attacks have surged over the last year, as Israel’s far-right government, which itself includes ultranationalist settlers, signals support.