REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsDUBAI, Dec 1 (Reuters) - The Biden administration has informed Israel that Washington will impose visa bans in the next few weeks on Israeli extremist settlers engaged in violence against Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank, a senior State Department official said.
The West Bank, among the territories where Palestinians seek statehood, has experienced a surge of violence in recent months amid expanding Jewish settlements and a nearly decade-old impasse in U.S.-sponsored peacemaking.
The United States has repeatedly expressed its concern over the rising violence in the West Bank, saying it must stop.
"I have been emphatic with Israel’s leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable.
The United States is prepared to take our own steps, including issuing visa bans against extremists attacking civilians in the West Bank," Biden wrote.
Persons:
Joe Biden, Eisenhower, Evelyn Hockstein, Biden, Antony Blinken, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel hurtled, Eylon Levy, Israel, Washington, Humeyra Pamuk, Howard Goller
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Washington , U.S, Israel, Washington, United States, Gaza, U.S, Israel's