Palestine slams US sanctions as ‘blatant support’ for Israeli occupation

RAMALLAH, Palestine / ISTANBUL

A senior Palestinian official on Thursday denounced US sanctions on officials from the Palestinian Authority (PA), calling it “blatant support for Israel’s occupation” and its ongoing war on Gaza.

Wassel Abu Yousef, a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)’s Executive Committee, told Anadolu the sanctions come “as the US partners in Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.”

He accused Washington of “backing Israel’s crimes and its settlers,” saying the sanctions were meant to “support the occupation and its war of extermination, and to erase the Palestinian cause after the New York conference and the wave of countries announcing plans to recognize Palestine, which has risen to the top of the international agenda.”

Abu Yousef added that the measures also sought “to undermine Palestinian representation,” stressing that “the decision is nothing but further support for the occupation.”

Earlier Thursday, the US Department of State announced visa bans on PA and PLO officials, citing the 1989 PLO Commitments Compliance Act and the 2002 Middle East Peace Commitments Act.

It said the Palestinian leadership had “failed to comply with prior commitments,” pointing to moves at the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice as well as payments to prisoners.

The US justified the sanctions as necessary to “protect national security” and to hold the PA and PLO accountable for “undermining the prospects for peace.”

The sanctions came as Israel has pursued a brutal offensive on Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, killing over 60,200 Palestinians. The relentless bombardment has devastated the enclave and led to food shortages.

On Monday, Israeli rights groups B’Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights-Israel accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, citing the systematic destruction of Palestinian society and the deliberate dismantling of the territory’s healthcare system.