The European Union has reached an agreement to impose sanctions on violent Israeli settlers, breaking a long-standing stalemate over the issue. However, one Member of the European Parliament described this move as merely a “baby step.” EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas emphasized the consequences of violence and extremism, stating, “Violence and extremism carry consequences.” Despite this progress, the 27-member bloc remains divided on implementing more stringent trade sanctions.
According to France’s foreign minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, the EU is targeting key Israeli organizations that support extremist and violent colonization of the West Bank, along with their leaders. Barrot expressed urgency in addressing these acts, calling them “most serious and intolerable” and demanding their immediate cessation. Although the full list of sanctioned individuals remains undisclosed, it reportedly excludes two extremist Israeli ministers, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, who were previously sanctioned by the UK in June for inciting violence against Palestinian communities.
The breakthrough in the EU’s decision came after Hungary’s new pro-EU administration withdrew its veto, which had been maintained by former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Alongside sanctions on settlers, the EU also plans to sanction key figures within Hamas, Kallas announced. Reacting to the EU’s decision, Israel’s foreign minister, Gideon Sa’ar, accused the EU of arbitrarily and politically targeting Israeli citizens and entities solely based on their political views without substantiated justification.
While the EU’s measures affect only a small portion of settlers, they fall short of the broader actions some member states had advocated for. Both France and Sweden have pushed for tariffs on imports from illegal settlements, arguing in a joint paper that increased pressure on Israel is essential to halt its settlement policies and practices. Sweden’s foreign minister, Maria Malmer Stenergard, described the imposition of tariffs on goods from illegal settlements as the “most realistic proposal.”
Implementing a ban on products would require unanimous approval from all 27 EU members, while tariffs can be enacted through a majority vote. Under the existing EU-Israel association agreement, products originating from occupied territories are denied preferential trade terms, though their trade is not outright banned.