ISTANBUL

Singapore on Friday imposed financial sanctions and entry bans on four Israeli individuals over their involvement in "acts of violence" against Palestinians in the West Bank.

Meir Mordechai Ettinger, Elisha Yered, Ben-Zion Gopstein and Baruch Marzel "have been involved in egregious acts of extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank," according to a Foreign Ministry statement.

"Such actions are unlawful and undermine and jeopardize prospects for a two-State solution," the statement said, reiterating Singapore’s view that Israeli settlements in the West Bank are illegal under international law.

The presence and expansion of these settlements "will make it much harder to arrive at a viable two-State solution," it said.

"As a firm supporter of international law and the two-State solution, Singapore opposes any unilateral attempts to change facts on the ground through acts which are illegal under international law," it added, urging Israel to "restrain acts of settler violence and to hold the perpetrators accountable."

The Israeli army has escalated attacks in the occupied West Bank since the outbreak of the war in the Gaza Strip in October 2023.

More than 1,076 Palestinians have since been killed, and 10,700 injured in attacks by the army and illegal settlers in the occupied territory. More than 20,500 people have also been arrested.

In a landmark opinion last July, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.