Foreign governments threaten repercussions over Israeli settler violence

The foreign ministers of Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom published a joint statement Sept. 8 condemning Israeli-linked hostilities in the West Bank and imposing trade sanctions against Israel in response to the violence.

The coalition of 12 nations will establish “restrictions on trade in goods with settlements which are illegal under international law,” or consider such restrictions, the foreign ministers said in their statement.

“The Government of Israel’s actions in the West Bank are undermining the possibility of a two-State solution. The situation is rapidly deteriorating amid unprecedented levels of settler violence and settlement expansion,” they wrote.

“Together, we are resolute: the two-state solution must be protected, and we will take action in pursuit of a just and lasting peace,” they continued. “We firmly oppose actions tantamount to the annexation of Palestinian land and forcible displacement of the Palestinian population.”

The foreign ministers called on the Israeli government to “immediately halt the expansion of settlements and civilian administrative powers” and seek accountability for alleged settler violence, including investigating reported Israeli military participation in settler violence.

The joint statement’s publication follows comments made Sept. 5 by U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, characterizing Israeli settler actions as those of “terrorists.”

“There may be a few hundred that are responsible, but that's a few hundred too many,” he said, upon returning from a visit to the West Bank. “One of the messages that we have been sending, and we will continue to send, is that people in these communities have a right to live with a level of security and safety, and that the government has a responsibility to make sure that that happens.”

A Sept. 8 survey from Rasmussen Reports also found that support for the Israeli government — and, in particular, support for U.S. aid to Israel — is on the decline.

Fewer than half (45%) of surveyed voters said that they would prefer to support a political candidate who will continue U.S. aid to Israel, while more than one-third (35%) said that they would rather back a candidate who would end U.S. aid to Israel.

Voters are more evenly split on the question of whether or not the Israeli government is committing “genocide” against the Palestinian people, with 34% saying that the Israeli government is committing “genocide” and 37% saying that it is not. The remaining 29% of surveyed voters said that they are unsure.

Divisions on the issue are widest between Republicans and Democrats, but also between younger and older voters.

Half (50%) of Democrats said that the Israeli government is committing genocide, while a majority (55%) of Republican voters said that it is not. Roughly the same share (56%) of Republicans said that they sympathize more with Israel than with Palestine, compared to only 24% of Democrats who said the same. Nearly two-thirds (63%) of Republicans also said that they would back a candidate who will continue support for Israel over a candidate who would not.

Rasmussen Reports found that support for Israel is strongest among voters aged 50 to 64, while voters under the age of 30 are twice as likely to sympathize more with the Palestinians (44%) than with the Israelis (22%).

An April Pew Research Center study likewise found that young voters have quickly soured on U.S. support for Israel, including young Republican voters.

The survey found that 60% of voters hold an unfavorable opinion of Israel, up seven points over the course of one year, while nearly as many (59%) said that they have no confidence in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “do the right thing regarding world affairs.”

Notably, a majority (57%) of Republican voters under the age of 50 hold a negative opinion of Israel, as do 84% of Democrats in the same age range.