US imposes sanctions on Palestinian Authority officials and PLO members
Washington accused the PA and PLO of 'continuing to support terrorism', supporting international legal cases against Israel and 'undermining prospects for peace', the US State Department said in a statement on Thursday.
The State Department did not immediately release a list of the officials named in the sanctions, who will be denied US visas.
'It is in our national security interests to impose consequences and hold the PLO and PA accountable for not complying with their commitments and undermining the prospects for peace,' the statement added.
The State Department accused the PA and PLO of 'taking actions to internationalise its conflict with Israel', which it said was in breach of commitments they made under the PLO Commitments Compliance Act of 1989 and the Middle East Peace Commitments Act of 2002.
The sanctions come after western nations including Canada, France and the UK said they could endorse a Palestinian state at September's UN General Assembly. The US has called the decision to recognise a Palestinian state 'reckless' and said it would benefit Hamas.
More than 60,200 Palestinians have been killed since Israel launched its war on Gaza, making it by far the deadliest episode of the decades-long conflict. Hunger grips Gaza and recent images of starving children have fuelled international backlash and forced Israel to allow more humanitarian aid into the besieged enclave.
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