EU approves sanctions on Israeli West Bank residents, Hamas leaders | European Union news

The European Union has agreed to impose sanctions Israeli settlers and leading figures of Hamas.

At the meeting of the foreign ministers of the member countries will arrive on Monday about the sanctions. The measures facing those who settle in Israel for violence against Palestinians in West Bank it was long-awaited, blocked by the self-proclaimed unconstitutional government of former Hungarian leader Viktor Orban.

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This package is aimed at three Israeli residents and four permanent entities. However, their identity has not been made public.

“It was time to leave the external crisis,” said the EU’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, following the deal. “Extremism and violence have consequences.”

Former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban suspended the sanctions for several months. However, a the appointment of a new Prime Minister Peter Magyar Saturday saw the veto quickly removed.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot welcomed the change, saying the EU “acknowledges the major Israeli organizations responsible for supporting brutality and violence in the West Bank”.

“These monstrous and intolerable acts must end without delay,” he wrote on social media.

Israel was quick to condemn this, saying that Jews have the right to live in the occupied West Bank, even though this violates international law.

“The European Union has decided, arbitrarily and politically, to impose sanctions on Israeli citizens and organizations for their political views and without any justification,” Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on television.

“Israel has stood, stands, and will continue to stand for the right of Jews to live within our country.”

Right-wing Defense Minister Itamar Ben Gvir criticized the EU as “antisemitic”.

“Waiting for antisemitic unity to make a moral decision is like waiting for the sun to rise in the west. When our enemies commit crimes and kill Jews, the European Union is trying to tie the hands of those who defend themselves,” said Ben Gvir in a post on social media.

“Constant work will not fail. We will continue to build, plant, protect, and live in the entire land of Israel.”

Hamas leaders agreed

Barrot said the ministers also decided to recognize the leadership of the Palestinian group Hamas, whose armed wing was responsible for the attacks on southern Israel from Gaza on October 7, 2023 that killed about 1,200 people and took 240 hostages.

“These extreme and intolerable actions must end without delay,” Barrot said on national television.

“I agree with the senior leaders of Hamas, responsible for the worst massacre in our history since the Shoah in which 51 French people lost their lives, a terrorist organization that must be disarmed and removed from participation in the future of Palestine,” said Barrot, using the Hebrew word for the Holocaust.

Hamas did not immediately respond.

Besides East Jerusalem, more than 500,000 Israelis live in the occupied West Bank, among the nearly three million Palestinians.

In 2025, Israel’s settlement growth reached its highest level since 2017, when the United Nations began tracking data.

Since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza, the West Bank has experienced almost daily violence involving Israeli soldiers and residents. More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed in the area, according to the UN.

While the EU is moving forward with sanctions imposed on Israeli residents, there is no consensus among member states to take action against Israel, such as suspending trade deals.

However, since Hungary no longer blocked action, influence could grow, although Budapest was not the only member state to be cautious.

However, foreign ministers who met in Brussels discussed the order to ban goods from Israel in the West Bank.

Italy’s Antonio Tajani said the European Commission will make a decision on the move, and then the bloc will see if it has enough support.