The United States has determined that five units of Israel's genocidal army are responsible for gross human rights violations of Palestinians.
This relates to violations that occurred in the occupied West Bank prior to the Hamas counterattack in October.
“Active” intervention and “corrective” measures were taken in four units. Therefore, the possibility of imposing US sanctions has been ruled out, according to the State Department in Washington. Discussions continue between the Israeli and American governments regarding the Fifth Army Unit, about which Israel provided additional information.
The ministry said it continues to consult with the Israeli government, which provided more information about the fifth unit, which is still under investigation. Spokesman Vedant Patel denied the existence of double standards or special treatment for Israel. He said that the United States applies the same standards to all countries that receive American military aid.
Those countries must guarantee in writing that they will use weapons in accordance with international human rights law and international humanitarian law, as stated in President Joe Biden's memorandum. Israel provided such guarantees last month, but human rights groups objected to them and called for a suspension of arms shipments to Israel.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on April 22 that the process of verifying compliance with the Leahy Act is very thorough. This law, named after former Senator Patrick Leahy, prohibits the United States from providing military aid to foreign units guilty of human rights violations.
The United States is reportedly planning to impose sanctions on the Israeli army's Netzah Yehuda Battalion, which is accused of committing human rights violations against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
Genocide
Israel, backed by the United States, has been waging a bloody attack on Gaza since October. About 34,500 Palestinians were killed and 78,000 others were injured, most of them children and women. Nearly nine out of ten residents are displaced and suffer from lack of food, water and medicine.
Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. In a preliminary ruling issued in January, this international court ordered Tel Aviv to stop acts of genocide and stop obstructing international humanitarian aid to civilians suffering in Gaza.
In a new ruling issued at the end of March, the International Court of Justice once again ordered Israel to allow emergency aid facilities for Gaza residents.
