On August 5, some 19 Democratic senators and representatives signed a letter calling on the Trump administration to use “all the diplomatic and economic tools at its disposal, including restoring sanctions, to end this Israeli) violence and expansion of settlements.” The letter states that since President Trump has returned to office Palestinians are being displaced by Israeli security forces and settler violence “at an unprecedented rate,” and that the administration’s “deference to the Netanyahu government has contributed to a climate of impunity and unbridled violence towards civilian populations and religious minorities...In 2025 the Israeli government authorized more West Bank settlements than in the previous ten years combined.”
The letter further argues that, while [President Trump promised that he “will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank,” his Executive Order to rescind sanctions on 30 violent settlers and organizations undermined his own promise and has only encouraged more violence and land seizures. The congressional leaders write, “In practice, violent settlers and the Benjamin) Netanyahu government have proceeded to rapidly extend Israeli control over civilian populations in the region. Ending sanctions against those individuals and entities associated with West Bank extremism sent a clear message: settlers can use violent and deadly force with impunity against Palestinians and Americans while seizing land … and no one will face consequences.”
