Human rights violations

Nevertheless, no US sanctions against Israel’s army

According to the report, Israel's army has "effectively remedied" the violations.(Bild: APA/AFP/JACK GUEZ)

In the course of an investigation by the US State Department, five Israeli army units were found to have committed human rights violations. Months ago, a State Department committee recommended that the units concerned be excluded from US aid. However, the violations are not being punished.

The so-called "Leahy Law" in the USA prohibits military assistance to foreign units involved in serious human rights violations. On April 17, the investigative platform "ProPublica" published a report according to which a committee in the US State Department had already recommended months ago that several Israeli military and police units be excluded from US aid due to human rights violations in the West Bank before October 7. According to the report, several cases of rape and arbitrary killings were involved.

Shortly afterwards, the US State Department confirmed that a total of five Israeli units in the West Bank had been found to have committed "serious human rights violations" before the start of the Gaza war. According to the information, four of the battalions had "effectively remedied" these violations, while the investigation into the fifth unit had not been completed at the time.

"Measures taken to avoid repetition"
In the meantime, however, the problems in this unit are also said to have been resolved. A report is also available here. Two of the soldiers concerned were "immediately withdrawn from their combat positions", have since left the military and are no longer allowed to serve in the reserves, explained a spokesperson for the US State Department. The Israeli military had also "taken measures to prevent a recurrence of the incidents".

Members of the Netzach Jehuda battalion(Bild: AFP)

Media reports suggest that the latest formation is probably a largely ultra-Orthodox battalion called Netzach Yehuda (see picture above). According to the Times of Israel, it was associated with right-wing extremism and violence against Palestinians. Israel withdrew the unit from the West Bank in December 2022 and has since deployed it mainly in the north of the country.