The US State Department has now accused five Israeli army units of “serious human rights violations”.
These violations were committed against Palestinians in the West Bank and took place before the major attack on Israel by the radical Islamist group Hamas on October 7, the State Department in Washington said on Monday. However, it was noted that four of these units had already taken “corrective actions” to avoid US sanctions.
Washington apparently still views the ultra-Orthodox Netzach Yehuda Battalion as problematic. It was originally founded in 1999 as a flagship project with 30 soldiers to make it easier for ultra-Orthodox men who were exempt from military service to enter military service. The combat unit is considered a success and now has about a thousand soldiers.
Troops are becoming increasingly radicalized
Although ultra-Orthodox also serve in other army units, the Netzach Yehuda Battalion, on the other hand, caters to the special sensitivities of strictly religious Jews. This gives them extra time for prayers and religious studies. Moreover, their contact with female soldiers is limited.
In addition to young men from the ultra-Orthodox spectrum, over the years the battalion has absorbed more and more members of the national-religious settler movement, who have close ties to the right-wing extremist parties of ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir, among others. others. Criticism of the unit has increased recently, including because of alleged attacks by soldiers on Palestinians.
Palestinian prisoner suffers a heart attack
Netzach Yehuda soldiers in the West Bank are believed to have been responsible for the violent death of Palestinian Omar Assad: the US dual national died of a heart attack in 2022 after being arrested and later abandoned at a construction site. According to a Palestinian investigation, the 80-year-old died of a stress-induced heart attack caused by abuse.
Source: Krone
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