The State Department announced on Friday that it has decided not to block aid to an Israeli military unit for the first time, following efforts by Israel to address human rights abuses. While the specific unit was not named publicly, it is believed to be the Netzah Yehuda, historically stationed in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Reports have linked the unit to violations against civilians in the Palestinian territory, including the death of a 78-year-old Palestinian American man while in the unit's custody in 2022. Secretary of State Antony Blinken had previously found that the battalion had committed serious human rights abuses triggering the Leahy law, a U.S. regulation on aid to foreign security forces.
