Battalion accused of violence against Palestinians, including death of Palestinian American man Omar Assad at checkpoint.
Netzah Yehuda battalion formed for ultra-Orthodox Jewish men and has attracted other Orthodox soldiers and hard-line nationalists from settler movement.
United States considering sanctions against Israeli military unit Netzah Yehuda for human rights violations in occupied West Bank.
The United States is considering imposing sanctions on Israeli military units, specifically the Netzah Yehuda battalion, for alleged human rights violations in the occupied West Bank. This would be a first for the U.S., as no Israeli military unit has previously faced such penalties. The Netzah Yehuda battalion, which was formed for ultra-Orthodox Jewish men and has attracted other Orthodox soldiers and hard-line nationalists from the West Bank settler movement, has been accused of violence against Palestinians in the past. In response to this potential action, Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have criticized the move as a 'moral low' and 'the peak of absurdity.' The U.S. State Department began investigating the Netzah Yehuda battalion in late 2022 after its soldiers were involved in several incidents of violence against Palestinian civilians. One such incident resulted in the death of an 80-year-old Palestinian American man, Omar Assad, who was arrested by Netzah Yehuda soldiers at a checkpoint and left handcuffed and gagged on the ground, where he was later found dead. The battalion was moved from the West Bank to the Golan Heights in January 2023 due to these incidents. It is important to note that all allegations should be thoroughly investigated before any conclusions are drawn or actions are taken.
The United States is considering imposing sanctions on one or more Israeli battalions accused of human rights violations during operations in the occupied West Bank.
Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have called the possibility of US sanctions a ‘moral low’ and ‘the peak of absurdity’.
Netzah Yehuda battalion, one of the battalions in question, has been accused of violence against Palestinians in the West Bank in the past.
Netzah Yehuda was established for ultra-Orthodox Jewish men and has attracted other Orthodox soldiers as well as hard-line nationalists from the West Bank settler movement.
Accuracy
Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have called the possibility of US sanctions a ‘moral low’ and ‘the peak of absurdity.’
The possible imposition of sanctions would come under the 1997 Leahy Law which bans foreign military units accused of human rights violations from receiving US aid or training.
Deception
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Fallacies
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Bias
(95%)
The authors express their disapproval of the potential US sanctions against Israeli battalions accused of human rights violations by using the phrases 'moral low' and 'sting'. They also describe Netanyahu's reaction as 'lashing out', implying a negative attitude towards the US for considering such sanctions.
But such a punitive move would clearly sting, especially coming from Israel’s closest ally.
Netanyahu said in a social media post that his government would ‘act by all means’ against any such move.
The United States is considering imposing sanctions on one or more Israeli battalions accused of human rights violations during operations in the occupied West Bank, according to a person familiar with the deliberations. Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on Saturday called the possibility of the Biden administration’s placing such sanctions ‘the peak of absurdity and a moral low’ at a time when Israeli forces are fighting a war in Gaza against Hamas.
The Biden admin is considering imposing sanctions on the Israeli 'Netzah Yehuda' battalion for human rights violations in the occupied West Bank.
This would be the first time the U.S. imposed sanctions on an Israeli military unit.
Accuracy
The United States is considering imposing sanctions on one or more Israeli battalions accused of human rights violations during operations in the occupied West Bank.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to announce sanctions against the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) ‘Netzah Yehuda’ battalion for human rights violations in the occupied West Bank.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to announce sanctions against the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) ‘Netzah Yehuda’ battalion for human rights violations in the occupied West Bank.
This would be the first time the U.S. imposed sanctions on an Israeli military unit.
The special State Department panel that investigated alleged violations of human rights based on the Leahy law recommended that Blinken disqualify multiple Israeli military and police units from receiving U.S. aid.
Accuracy
The sanctions will ban the battalion and its members from receiving any kind of U.S. military assistance or training.
A special State Department panel recommended that Secretary of State Antony Blinken disqualify multiple Israeli military and police units from receiving U.S. aid after reviewing allegations of serious human rights abuses.
Recommendations for action against Israeli units were sent to Blinken in December.
The incidents under review mostly took place in the West Bank and occurred before Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel, and include reports of extrajudicial killings by the Israeli Border Police, an incident involving a battalion gagging, handcuffing, and leaving an elderly Palestinian American man for dead, and an allegation that interrogators tortured and raped a teenager who had been accused of throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails.
Accuracy
A special State Department panel recommended that Secretary of State Anttony Blinken disqualify multiple Israeli military and police units from receiving U.S. aid after reviewing allegations of serious human rights abuses.
Blinken has failed to act on the proposal despite growing international criticism of the Israeli military's conduct in Gaza.
Deception
(30%)
The article contains selective reporting as it only mentions allegations against Israeli military and police units without mentioning any context or counterarguments. It also uses emotional manipulation by describing the alleged human rights abuses in graphic detail to elicit an emotional response from readers.
But Blinken has failed to act on the proposal in the face of growing international criticism of the Israeli military’s conduct in Gaza, according to current and former State Department officials.
, among the allegations reviewed by the committee was the January 2021 arrest of a 15-year old boy by Israeli Border Police. The teen was held for five days at the Al-Mascobiyya detention center on charges that he had thrown stones and Molotov cocktails at security forces. Citing an allegation shared by a Palestinian child welfare nonprofit, forum officials said there was credible information the teen had been forced to confess after he was ‘subjected to both physical and sexual torture, including rape by an object.’
Fallacies
(90%)
The article contains several instances of appeals to authority and dichotomous depictions, but no explicit logical fallacies. The author cites multiple current and former State Department officials as sources for information about the delay in implementing sanctions against Israeli military units accused of human rights violations. This is an appeal to authority, as the credibility of the information is based on the perceived expertise or authority of these officials. However, this alone does not constitute a logical fallacy. The author also describes incidents and allegations in a way that presents a clear dichotomy between Israeli actions and human rights violations, but this is not an explicit logical fallacy as it does not involve incorrect reasoning or invalid assumptions.
]The revelations about Blinken’s failure to act on the recommendations come at a delicate moment in U.S.-Israel relations.[
Multiple State Department officials who have worked on Israeli relations said that Blinken’s inaction has undermined Biden’s public criticism, sending a message to the Israelis that the administration was not willing to take serious steps.
Officials told ProPublica that the panel ultimately recommended that the secretary of state take action.
Bias
(80%)
The article reports on the Israeli military's human rights abuses and Blinken's failure to act on recommendations from a special State Department panel to sanction specific Israeli military units. The author does not express any bias towards or against Israel or the Israeli military, but rather presents factual information about the situation. However, there is a clear implication of criticism towards Blinken for his inaction and the potential message it sends to Israel regarding U.S. willingness to take serious steps against human rights violations.
Blinken has failed to act on the proposal in the face of growing international criticism of the Israeli military’s conduct in Gaza, according to current and former State Department officials.
Multiple State Department officials who have worked on Israeli relations said that Blinken’s inaction has undermined Biden’s public criticism, sending a message to the Israelis that the administration was not willing to take serious steps.
The revelations about Blinken’s failure to act on the recommendations come at a delicate moment in U.S.-Israel relations.
