The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned two Israeli entities for establishing fundraising campaigns for extremists fomenting violence in the West Bank.
OFAC designated Mount Hebron Fund and Shlom Asiraich for generating $140,000 and $31,000, respectively, on behalf of Yinon Levi and David Chai Chasdai, both of whom were designated in February for allegedly leading a riot that resulted in the death of a Palestinian civilian.
“Mount Hebron Fund and Shlom Asiraich generated tens of thousands of dollars for extremists responsible for destroying property, assaulting civilians, and violence against Palestinians,” said Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo in a press release Friday.
In February, the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network issued an alert that advised financial institutions in identifying and reporting suspicious activity associated with the funding of such violence.
In a concurrent action, the State Department designated Ben Zion Gopstein, the founder and leader of Lehava, an organization whose members have engaged in destabilizing violence affecting the West Bank.
“We are deeply concerned about the escalation of violence in the West Bank in recent days and call on Israel to take all appropriate measures to prevent attacks by violent extremist settlers and hold those responsible accountable,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement.
“The United States will not hesitate to take additional steps to promote accountability if necessary,” Miller added, potentially teasing reported sanctions being considered against the Israel Defense Force (IDF) over rights violations in the West Bank.
On Sunday, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on X, formerly Twitter, “If somebody thinks they can impose sanctions on a unit in the IDF—I will fight this with all my powers.”
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