A federal lawsuit filed Thursday alleges the Biden administration is illegally imposing sanctions on U.S. citizens in Israel and the West Bank.
The National Jewish Advocacy Center (NJAC), along with Zell Aaron & Co. and Marcus & Marcus LLC, filed a federal lawsuit Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia challenging the Biden administration's executive order (EO). woke up. ) 14115.
The lawsuit represents unprecedented sanctions against Jews living in Israel and the West Bank, including American citizens like plaintiffs Levi Yitzchak Pilant and Issachar Mann, who lawyers say are unconstitutional. This is the second lawsuit of its kind against the claims.
In response to the October 7 terrorist attack on Israel, President Biden presidential order (EO) Imposing sanctions on “persons who undermine peace, security, and stability in the West Bank” in February 2024.
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Mr. Mane on the farm. (Maknae family)
Mr. Biden said: When announcing the EO, “The situation in the West Bank, particularly the high level of violence by extremist settlers, the forced displacement of people and villages, and the destruction of property, has reached intolerable levels and poses a serious threat to peace, security and stability in the West Bank. Gaza, Israel and the wider Middle East region. ”
As a result, those sanctioned face having their bank accounts frozen, their credit cards suspended, and the inability to carry out basic life activities. Critics believe the measure would allow the administration to sanction Jewish residents of Israel who disagree with the administration's policies, a violation of the constitutional rights of American citizens and U.S. supporters in Israel. It is criticized that
EO 14115 authorizes financial sanctions against “foreign persons”[s]” who act against the Biden administration's policies in Judea and Samaria, also known as the West Bank, but the lawsuit claims these provisions apply only to Jews.
“When we apply a double standard of sanctioning only Jews, and when we punish Jews for the simple act of being Jewish in places where Jews are not wanted, there is a word for it: It’s not pretty,” said NJAC CEO Mark Goldfeder.
Additionally, the complaint criticizes the State Department's failure to investigate the allegations, alleging that it instead relied almost entirely on biased reporting by extremist anti-Israel groups filled with patently false allegations. .
On August 28, 2024, Mr. Pirant said, “He has the scope of his authority to lead a group of armed settlers to set up barricades, pursue and attack Palestinians, and forcibly expel Palestinians from their settlements.'' He was sanctioned for “malicious activities outside the country''. land. ”
The lawsuit claims he has never committed violence against Palestinians.
“The State Department’s accusations are completely false, and the officers have been released in a “comprehensive document” filed just days before the sanctions by Democracy in the Arab World Now (“DAWN”), an organization with ties to extremists. “The Muslim Brotherhood, which appears to be based on Hamas, has praised Hamas, but could not even get Plaintiff Piranto's last name accurate,” the complaint states.
In fact, the complaint alleges that Mr. Pirant is a bona fide security official of the Israeli government authorized to counter threats to the security of Israeli citizens, and that he is in active military service when organizing patrols and barricades as part of the government. It points out that the State Department has admitted that mission.
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A photo taken on February 18, 2024 in the village of Turmus Aiya, near the city of Ramallah in the West Bank, shows the nearby Israeli settlement of Shiloh in the background. (Getty Images)
Mr. Manne and the Manne Farm Outpost were also approved by the State Department on July 11, 2024 for establishing a farm on “pastures belonging to Palestinian communities,” and that “settlers from this outpost regularly “They attack community shepherds and prevent them from accessing the Palestinian community.” Meadows due to acts of violence. ”
But his lawyers say he has “never appropriated or attempted to appropriate land that is privately owned by Palestinians or designated by the Israeli government as private or restricted land.” ” he claims. In fact, he has a general policy of grazing his flock of about 130 sheep in secluded areas. It is owned by individuals, whether Israeli or Palestinian.
Mr. Pirant and Mr. Manne claim that as a result of the sanctions, their bank accounts and credit cards were frozen, they were unable to make mortgage payments, and their finances and reputations were damaged.
Fox News Digital previously covered a similar lawsuit brought by a group of Israelis against the regime, challenging the constitutionality of the unprecedented sanctions regime, but this is the first time a sanctioned person has responded to a sanctions order. This will result in an objection being filed. The plaintiffs are U.S. citizens who claim the sanctions violate their due process and equal protection rights.
Eugene Kontorovich, a professor at George Mason University School of Law who served as NJAC's general counsel and was a member of the defense team in the first lawsuit challenging the sanctions, said the government's actions meant that certain lands were inherently “It is based on the shocking idea that it belongs to Palestine,” he said.
“American Jews have had their bank accounts frozen and their lives upended for more than just being vilified by people who believe they have no right to live in the West Bank,” he said.
Mr Kontorovich previously said that “violence” is defined by anti-Israel groups and that Jews defending themselves in the face of Palestinian attackers in an “arbitrary” manner relied on data from the United Nations Secretariat's website. He argued that it could also be applied to humans. According to the complaint, the Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) classifies acts of self-defense by Jews and counterterrorism operations by the IDF as settler violence.
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Israeli officials work at the scene of a shooting incident by Palestinian gunmen near the Ma'ale Adumim settlement in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on February 22, 2024. (Reuters photo)
For example, the complaint states that after a Palestinian who entered a Jewish farm in the northern West Bank with a knife and explosives was shot and killed, the United Nations recognized him as a victim of “settler violence.” It is being
“This is all the more surprising because there are thousands of Palestinians who have been involved in terrorist attacks against Jewish civilians that credibly threaten the 'peace, security, or stability of the West Bank,'” the complaint states. has added.
According to the complaint, there will be 1,040 large-scale attempts on Jewish lives by Palestinians in 2024, including 689 shootings, 326 explosives, 13 stabbings, nine driving attacks, and two suicide bombings. , there was one case of kidnapping. 231 successful attacks resulted in 46 deaths and 337 injuries.
Matthew Meinen, a litigation attorney at NJAC, said the Biden administration's “lazy and clearly politically motivated president has not been able to do anything about it.” “By sanctioning Mane and others, they are undermining Israel's security.” Jews who dare to protect themselves and their land from terrorist incursions. ”
“The government's failure to even check whether these people were U.S. citizens before sanctioning them as 'foreigners' exposes a sad vendetta that we are now seeking redress.” he said.
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Fox News Digital reached out to the State Department for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
