France, allies eye national measures to pressure Israel over West Bank: Diplomats

Highlights:
- EU deadlock on Israel measures pushes some toward national
sanctions
- Sanctions announcement expected within days, diplomats say
- France to host civil society, ministerial meeting on 12 June
France is working with several countries to step up
pressure on Israel by pressing ahead with coordinated national sanctions
targeting individuals linked to violence in the West Bank, three European
diplomats said on Saturday.
The measures, which would include
asset freezes and travel bans, have yet to be finalised and countries may adopt
different lists of individuals, the diplomats said.
The move comes amid escalating violence by Israeli settlers
in the occupied West Bank and underscores anger in many Western countries
towards Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, which has expanded
settlements. Diplomats say that expansion is aimed at undermining prospects for
a Palestinian state.
No EU unanimity for tougher measures on Israel
The diplomats said that with
efforts blocked at the European Union to advance tougher measures against
Israel, several countries had concluded that coordinated national sanctions
were the best option for now.
"There is no unanimity at the
EU level, so we have moved to discussions at the national level," one
diplomat said.
Two of the diplomats said the
announcement would be in the coming days.
Another diplomat said Britain and
Norway were among the countries France was coordinating with, although it
remained unclear who else could join.
Most countries avoid publicly
discussing national sanctions for fear that potential targets could shift
assets in advance.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon
Saar said after some new EU sanctions on 11 May that the bloc had "chosen,
in an arbitrary and political manner, to impose sanctions on Israeli citizens
and entities because of their political views and without any basis."
Seven Western nations, including
France, Britain, Australia and Canada, accused the Israeli government on 22 May
of aggravating tensions in the West Bank.
A key concern is Israel's plan to
build a settlement east of Jerusalem, known as the E1 project, which would
bisect the West Bank and cut it off from East Jerusalem, fragmenting territory
Palestinians seek for an independent state.
"In the face of settlement
expansion and violence in the West Bank, we have already taken measures. More
could follow," a French diplomatic source said, declining to elaborate.
Britain's Foreign Office declined
to comment. The Norwegian foreign ministry did not immediately reply to a
request for comment.
France hosts meeting to keep issue on the table
The push to increase pressure on
Israel at the national level comes just days before France hosts a meeting on
12 June in Paris, bringing together Israeli and Palestinian civil society
groups and about a dozen foreign ministers.
The meeting will mark one year
since the adoption of the New York Declaration, a non-binding UN resolution
endorsed by the General Assembly that set out a roadmap towards a Palestinian
state and led to about a dozen countries, including France, recognising a
Palestinian state in September.
French officials have said they
want to keep the issue on the international agenda as wars in Iran and Lebanon
draw attention away from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, while talks over
Gaza's future remain deadlocked despite a fragile ceasefire.
















