Israel weighing sanctions on Palestinian leadership after UN vote

Senior Palestinian officials may lose their entry permits to Israel after UN resolution accusing Israel of “occupation,” urging International Court of Justice to intervene.

By Adina Katz, World Israel News

Days after the United Nations passed a Palestinian delegation-sponsored resolution demanding that the International Court of Justice in The Hague examine legal consequences for Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria, top Israeli officials are considering placing sanctions on Palestinian Authority leaders.

Shortly after the vote, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel was not beholden to the measure, and that it was an example of anti-Israel bias within the world body.

“Like hundreds of the twisted decisions against Israel taken by the UNGA over the years, today’s despicable decision will not bind the Israeli government,” Netanyahu said.

“The Jewish nation is not an occupier in its own land and its own eternal capital, Jerusalem,” he said, adding that “no UN decision can distort the historical facts.”

Beyond slamming the vote, Israel is planning punitive action against the Palestinian leadership, who were instrumental in drafting the measure and garnering support for it, according to a Channel 13 News report.

A senior security source told Channel 13 that the sanctions will be specifically aimed at senior Palestinian officials, and include moves such as canceling their entry permits to Israel.

However, civilian Palestinians who work in Israel will not see their work permits revoked.

Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Galant and Foreign Minister Eli Cohen are reportedly mulling over their options and expected to announce Israel’s response in the coming days.

A total of 87 countries, including Israel’s Arab allies who signed the Abraham Accords peace deals, voted in favor of the resolution. Twenty-six countries, including the U.S., Canada, and UK, voted against the measure.

Fifty-three countries abstained from the vote, including Ukraine, which has repeatedly slammed Israel for its neutrality during the conflict with Russia.

In a separate move, the Qatari-controlled news network Al Jazeera filed a case at the International Criminal Court against the state of Israel, regarding the slaying of reporter Shireen Abu Akleh.

Although neither Israeli nor Palestinian investigations determined that Abu Akleh’s death during a firefight between the IDF and Palestinian terrorists in Jenin was intentional, Al Jazeera has repeatedly pushed the narrative that she was targeted and “murdered.”