Q: What is Israel’s Netzah Yehuda battalion?

The Netzah Yehuda battalion , also known as the 97th Battalion of the Kfir Infantry Brigade, is a unit made up of ultra-Orthodox, or Haredi, soldiers. It was created in 1999 to allow religious recruits to serve in the military, and it mostly operates in Ramallah and Jenin, although it is now taking part in the Gaza war . The unit has previously been dogged by accusations of abuse toward Palestinians, according to Israeli media reports . In 2022, a commander of the battalion was reprimanded and the platoon commander and company commander removed from their positions following the death of Omar Assad , a 78-year-old Palestinian American man who had been detained at a West Bank checkpoint. Assad, a former Milwaukee grocery store owner, was reported to have suffered a stress-induced heart attack that was likely brought on by being bound, gagged and held by Israeli forces on Jan. 12 of that year, the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement at the time. The IDF added that his death was the result of “moral failure and poor decision-making” by the soldiers who had detained him. The IDF has recently said that the Netzah Yehuda battalion is part of Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza and operates in accordance with international law.

Question 1

What is Israel’s Netzah Yehuda battalion?

Accepted Answer

The Netzah Yehuda battalion, also known as the 97th Battalion of the Kfir Infantry Brigade, is a unit made up of ultra-Orthodox, or Haredi, soldiers. It was created in 1999 to allow religious recruits to serve in the military, and it mostly operates in Ramallah and Jenin, although it is now taking part in the Gaza war. The unit has previously been dogged by accusations of abuse toward Palestinians, according to Israeli media reports. In 2022, a commander of the battalion was reprimanded and the platoon commander and company commander removed from their positions following the death of Omar Assad, a 78-year-old Palestinian American man who had been detained at a West Bank checkpoint. Assad, a former Milwaukee grocery store owner, was reported to have suffered a stress-induced heart attack that was likely brought on by being bound, gagged and held by Israeli forces on Jan. 12 of that year, the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement at the time. The IDF added that his death was the result of “moral failure and poor decision-making” by the soldiers who had detained him. The IDF has recently said that the Netzah Yehuda battalion is part of Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza and operates in accordance with international law.

Question 2

What has happened so far?

Accepted Answer

News outlet Axios first reported over the weekend that Blinken is expected to announce aid cuts aimed at the Netzah Yehuda battalion over human rights violations in the occupied West Bank. Last week, Blinken told reporters he had made “determinations” related to a set of accusations of human rights violations by Israeli units in the West Bank. But he did not specifically name the Netzah Yehuda battalion. His remarks were in response to a ProPublica report that said he had not yet acted on the recommendations of the Israel Leahy Vetting Forum that certain Israeli military units be barred from receiving U.S. aid over human rights abuses. The Leahy Laws prohibit the United States from providing military assistance to foreign forces if there is credible information on gross violations of human rights. In response, prominent Israeli lawmakers have publicly criticized any attempt by the Biden administration to financially reprimand IDF units. Israeli opposition leader Benny Gantz told Blinken in a call Sunday that the move would be a “mistake” and “harm Israel’s international legitimacy.” On Monday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant visited troops from the Netzah Yehuda battalion, Israeli media reported, to reiterate his support. “No one in the world can teach us about values and morals,” Gallant said. “The security apparatus is behind you.”

Question 3

What are the Leahy Laws?

Accepted Answer

The Leahy Laws refer to statutory provisions pioneered by former senator Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.) in the late 1990s. They prohibit the U.S. government from providing funds to assist military individuals or foreign security forces where there is credible information implicating them of gross violations of human rights. The U.S. government considers torture, extrajudicial killing, enforced disappearance and rape as examples of “gross violations,” it has said. The Leahy Laws include an exception allowing for funding to be resumed if the U.S. secretary of state determines that the government of country in question is taking effective steps to bring the responsible members of the security forces unit to justice. The Leahy Laws have in the past been triggered for hundreds of foreign police and military units including in Colombia, Mexico and Cambodia. However, they are rarely used against a close U.S. political ally, illustrating a straining of relations between Washington and Tel Aviv during the six-month Gaza war. Israel remains the largest recipient of American military aid, receiving some $3.8 billion in annual security assistance. On Friday, Blinken called the Leahy legislation a “very important law.” “It’s one that we apply across the board. And when we’re doing these investigations, these inquiries, it’s something that takes time. That has to be done very carefully, both in collecting the facts and analyzing them,” he said. “And that’s exactly what we’ve done. And I think it’s fair to say that you’ll see results very soon.” John Hudson, Louisa Loveluck and Cate Brown contributed to this report.

What is Israel’s Netzah Yehuda battalion, and why could it face U.S. aid cuts?