US decides not to punish Israeli military forces for alleged abuses of human rights in West Bank

The Biden government found that three groups of soldiers in Israel did really bad things to Palestinian people in the West Bank. But, they will still get money from the US for their military, because Israel is trying to fix the problem.

The evaluation from the government hasn’t been shared with the public yet. It could change if Israel doesn’t do what it’s asked to do. The details were explained in a letter from Secretary of State Antony Blinken to House Speaker Mike Johnson. The media got hold of the letter, but it didn’t have a date on it.

The US will make sure Israel gets all the aid Congress promised without any delays, Blinken wrote.

The claims about each group happened before the war on October 7 when Hamas attacked Israel. None of the situations involve attacks on Hamas in Gaza, Iran, or its supporters.

However, some people who criticize the Biden administration may not be happy with the decision because they think Israel is not being punished enough for their military actions in Gaza. These actions have caused a lot of suffering for the civilian population.

Issa Amro, a well-known person who helps people in Palestine and lives in the West Bank city of Hebron, said he felt let down by the US decision, but he wasn’t surprised.

He said that the US is not taking clear steps to reduce violence and make peace between Palestinians and Israelis.

The government says it has been fair in looking at human rights violations and did not show favoritism to Israel. They also say that the US sometimes helps other countries to get rid of people who are doing bad things in their military.

“Every situation is unique, and we need to gather the information and follow it closely, and that’s exactly what we’re doing,” Blinken said to reporters on Monday when asked about the US review.

The Leahy Law is a rule that the US military has to follow. It says they can’t give weapons or training to foreign military units that hurt peoples’ rights.

The law has a special rule for countries that have punished the people in their military unit who did something wrong.

Someone who knows about the process and wants to keep their identity a secret said that the US and Israel have a special agreement. It says that the US has to talk to Israel before making any decisions about the Foreign Assistance Act.

The person said they are still talking to Israel about this issue, and if a military unit doesn’t do the right things, the US will stop giving them aid.

In total, five groups — three military and two civilian — were being checked for breaking human rights rules. According to Blinken’s letter, four have completed the necessary steps to fix the problem.

Israel also admitted that another group of their military had behaved in a way that goes against their rules. In 2022, the unit moved from the West Bank to the Golan Heights, Blinken said.

The Netzah Yehuda battalion is made for very religious Jewish men.

“The Israeli government has shared new information about the unit’s status, and we will work to find a way to fix any problems with the unit,” Blinken said.

“But this won’t change our help for Israel to protect itself from groups like Hamas, Iran, Hezbollah, and other dangers,” he told Johnson, who strongly supports Israel and helped pass a foreign aid bill in Congress this week.

Blinken said that no other groups broke the Leahy Law.

The secretary talked with important Israeli leaders this week after hearing about plans to punish Israeli military units from reports by Axios and ProPublica.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he will oppose the Biden administration’s decision, calling it unethical.