Canada Announces New Sanctions on Four Israeli Settlers in West Bank

Global Affairs Canada reported on Thursday, May 16 that Canada is taking a strict stance against four extremist Israeli Settlers by imposing new sanctions in alignment with the Special Economic Measures Act.

Sanctions will be imposed on individuals David Chai Chasdai, Yinon Levi, Zvi Bar Yosef, and Moshe Sharvit for actively engaging in violence against Palestinians and harming their properties in the West Bank. The extremist settlers may face additional measures for violating international peace and security with their aggressive actions of destabilization and violence.

Commenting on the first sanctions measures, Mélanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs said,

“The rise in violence by extremist Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank is deeply troubling and poses significant risks to peace and security in the region. While I was in the region recently, I heard directly from families that have been forced to leave their homes and farming lands as a direct result of violence and threats by extremist settlers. With these measures, we are sending a clear message that acts of extremist settler violence are unacceptable and that perpetrators of such violence will face consequences.”

Israeli settlers were directly and indirectly involved in more than 800 attacks on Palestinians since Oct 7, 2023, documented by the United Nations. These attacks have caused severe property damage, deaths, and dislocations of thousands of civilians leading to assaults while elevating regional tension and harming peace in the West Bank.

Staying true to its notion of not recognizing Israeli occupation of territories seized in 1976, Canada’s sanctions are aimed at banning dealings and entry of individuals to Canada under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act