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Some encouraging signs have emerged in recent weeks suggesting Western governments are finally shifting their approach to Israel/Palestine. However, as abuses and atrocities in the occupied Palestinian territory continue with no end in sight, there’s still a long way to go.
In a coordinated move this week, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, and the United Kingdom announced individual sanctions on two Israeli ministers: national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and finance minister Bezalel Smotrich.
These measures were not related to Gaza. The five governments sanctioned the two ministers for their role in inciting violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. What’s been happening in the West Bank sometimes gets overlooked because of the devastation in Gaza, but it’s been appalling, too.
Since October 2023, Israeli military demolitions and settler violence have displaced more than 6,400 Palestinians in the West Bank. By fueling or failing to stop settler violence, Israeli authorities have essentially greenlighted it. According to reports by an Israeli investigative journalist, Ben-Gvir even instructed police not to enforce the law against violent settlers.
The new sanctions will add pressure on the Israeli government to curb these abuses. They join other recent Western moves, hopefully signaling a much-needed shift overall, particularly from some governments that have often tried to shield the Israeli government from international criticism or consequences over its crimes in Gaza.
Last month, for example, the UK government adopted its hardest line yet in response to what it called the Israeli government’s continuing “egregious actions and rhetoric” in Gaza. UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy announced a suspension of free-trade negotiations with Israel, among other measures.
The EU has also announced a review of its economic agreement with Israel, because of what it called the “catastrophic” situation in Gaza.
All these measures are welcome. They suggest a long-necessary realignment of Western policies regarding the Israeli government, its abuses, and its atrocities. However, more is needed to increase pressure further.
For more than a year and a half now, Israeli authorities have been committing war crimes, crimes against humanity – including forced displacement and extermination – and acts of genocide in Gaza. Tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed since October 2023. Israeli authorities continue to use starvation as a method of war.
Israeli officials have announced plans that would amount to an escalation of extermination in Gaza. In the name of human dignity and under their legal obligation – their “duty to prevent” under the 1948 Genocide Convention – governments need to do much more.
Some Western governments now shifting policy continue to provide Israel with weapons, even though Israeli military atrocities are undeniable. If there’s one thing all governments should do now, it’s stop arming Israel.
