France has banned Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, four leaders of settler organizations and 21 violent settlers from entering its territory, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot announced Tuesday, as several countries adopted new sanctions against settlers and organizations deemed responsible for acts of violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
Israel reacted angrily to the decision, accusing the countries behind the new measures of encouraging anti-Semitism through anti-Israel policies.
In a statement published on X, Mr. Barrot strongly criticized Mr. Smotrich for actively encouraging the annexation of the West Bank and the "recolonization" of Gaza. He further accused the far-right minister, who also holds a position in the Ministry of Defense, of wanting to provoke "the economic collapse of the Palestinian Authority, with the disastrous consequences this entails for the Palestinian population."
Furthermore, on Tuesday, France, alongside Great Britain, Canada and Norway, announced coordinated action accompanied by sanctions against several settlers and entities, in response to "the unprecedented expansion of settlements and the resurgence of violence committed by settlers in the West Bank".
These sanctions aim to disrupt the financial flows that have "enabled extremist settler groups to act with impunity" in the West Bank, according to a statement from the British government, which specifies that these are coordinated sanctions "against the networks that finance and facilitate settler attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank."
