The United States has decided not to restrict military aid to the Netzah Yehuda Battalion, an Israeli Defense Forces unit previously accused of human rights violations against Palestinians in the West Bank. The decision comes after the State Department determined that the alleged violations had been effectively addressed.
The Netzah Yehuda Battalion, was transferred from the West Bank to the Golan Heights in 2022. Earlier this year, the unit's commander was reprimanded for the death of 78-year-old Palestinian American Omar Assad, who suffered a heart attack after being arrested. However, no soldiers faced criminal charges related to Assad's death.
The decision not to restrict aid to the battalion follows accusations by the United States against it and four other Israeli security units of serious human rights violations. The State Department said in April that the other four units had effectively addressed those violations.
The Department has continued to review an additional unit over the past few months, evaluating new information provided by the Israeli government. After a thorough review, the Department determined that the violations in this unit have also been effectively addressed.
Under the Leahy Act, the United States cannot provide assistance to foreign security forces involved in human rights abuses. However, an exception allows assistance to resume if the Secretary of State determines that the country's government is taking effective steps to bring to justice the responsible members of the security forces unit.
The remedial measures were described as two soldiers from the battalion being removed from combat positions and marked as ineligible to serve in the reserves, improving selection requirements for Netzah Yehuda recruits and implementing new control mechanisms during the training
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