U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has criticised Australia for joining a number of other nations in sanctioning Israeli ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong announced the sanctions in a joint statement with Canada, New Zealand, Norway, and the UK.
Wong claimed the sanctions were because Ben-Gvir and Smotrich had incited “violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.”
Both ministers believe the West Bank to be Israeli territory.
But Wong said the ministers’ stance on the disputed territory belonging to Israel incites “settler violence,” which she claims has led to the deaths of Palestinians—though the minister stopped short of quoting specific examples….