Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday he would fight sanctions against all Israeli military units for alleged rights abuses, after media reports said Washington was planning such a move.
The Axios news site reported on Saturday that Washington plans to impose sanctions on Israel’s Netzah Yehuda battalion, which has been operating in the occupied West Bank.
“If anyone thinks they can impose sanctions on an Israel Defense Forces unit, I will fight with all my might,” Netanyahu said in a statement, according to France 24.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken hinted at such steps when asked by a reporter in Italy about reports that his department had recommended cutting military aid to an Israeli unit involved in violent incidents in the West Bank.
Blinken, without giving details, said his department was conducting investigations under a law that prohibits sending military aid to foreign security forces that violate human rights with impunity.
