On Thursday, February 8, representatives from the Czech Republic and Hungary blocked attempts to impose sanctions on Israelis living in Judea and Samaria accused of attacking Palestinian Arabs.
According to Reuters, citing four diplomatic sources, Prague and Budapest are unwilling to approve anti-Israeli sanctions, at least for now.
Some sources suggest that the push for sanctions may resume after the EU tightens sanctions against the terrorist organization Hamas.
Reuters also reports that discussions involved imposing sanctions on 10-12 individuals, including a proposed ban on entry into the European Union.
The day before, Hungarian Foreign Minister, Peter Szijjarto, stated that the focus should be on supporting Israel in defeating Hamas and freeing hostages, rather than imposing sanctions. Czech Foreign Minister, Jan Lipavsky, emphasized that while his country doesn't fundamentally oppose sanctions against settlers inciting violence, they prefer not to introduce them simultaneously with measures against Hamas, stating, "You cannot equate terrorism with the actions of settlers; they are on different levels."
