The Times of Israel is liveblogging Wednesday’s events as they happen.
Rubio denounces sanctions on Ben Gvir and Smotrich, urges their reversal
After the State Department’s spokesperson condemned the decision by five Western government’s decisions to sanction far-right Israeli ministers Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, the office issues a statement in Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s name echoing disapproval of the move.
The statement is largely a regurgitation of the one made earlier by State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce, but also includes a call from Rubio for United Kingdom, Canada, Norway, New Zealand and Australia to reverse the decision.
“These sanctions do not advance US-led efforts to achieve a ceasefire, bring all hostages home and end the war,” Rubio says.
The secretary’s statement focused on Gaza, but the British-led move came in response to Israel’s policies in the West Bank, where they said Smotrich and Ben Gvir have incited extremist violence against Palestinians. Settler attacks have been taking place there unchecked on a near-daily basis and the head of the police’s West Bank division is currently under investigation for ignoring the phenomenon in order to curry favor with Ben Gvir.
“We reject any notion of equivalence: Hamas is a terrorist organization that committed unspeakable atrocities, continues to hold innocent civilians hostage, and prevents the people of Gaza from living in peace. We remind our partners not to forget who the real enemy is. The United States urges the reversal of the sanctions and stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Israel,” Rubio says.
Responding to UK-led sanctions, Smotrich cancels waiver allowing Israel-PA bank ties
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has directed his office to cancel a critical agreement for sustaining the Palestinian economy in retaliation for the decision by five Western countries to sanction him and fellow far-right minister Itamar Ben Gvir.
Smotrich’s office says in a statement that he directed the Finance Ministry’s accountant-general, Yali Rotenberg, to waive the indemnity that Israeli banks have been given to correspond with Palestinian banks.
Smotrich earlier in the day reportedly pledged to collapse the PA in response to the sanctions, even though Ramallah was not known to have any involvement in the joint decision by the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Norway.
The Palestinian economy relies heavily on the banks’ relationships with their Israeli counterparts to process transactions made in shekels, as the PA does not have its own currency. Some NIS 53 billion ($14 billion) were exchanged at Palestinian banks in 2023, according to official data.
The overwhelming majority of exchanges in the West Bank are in shekels, Israel’s national currency, because the Palestinian Authority is prevented from having a central bank that would allow it to print its own currency.
The so-called corresponding banking agreement requires periodic extensions by Israel to remain in effect, and the Biden administration exhausted significant efforts in urging Israel not to allow its expiration. The administration warned that failing to maintain the banking relations between Israel and the Palestinians would turn the West Bank into a “cash economy,” which would benefit terrorist organizations in the territory and make it harder for the already-weakened PA to fight such groups.
The Israeli security establishment also pushed back against the move, and Smotrich ultimately agreed to grant a one-year extension to the banking deal last November.
Rubio discusses Gaza with UAE counterpart
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met earlier today with UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed and discussed the ongoing Gaza war, the State Department says.
The two leaders discussed the “UAE’s provision of humanitarian assistance and highlighted the imperative of ensuring that Hamas can never rule Gaza or threaten Israel again,” the US readout adds.
Huckabee appears to express skepticism of Witkoff’s efforts in Gaza and Iran talks
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee appears to express skepticism with US special envoy Steve Witkoff’s efforts to broker a Gaza hostage deal and Iran nuclear deal.
Huckabee is asked during a Free Press podcast interview about Witkoff’s assertion earlier this year that Qatar is doing “God’s work” in mediating between Israel and Hamas.
“I hadn’t heard him say that. It would be very interesting if he did say that,” Huckabee responds.
“Steve and I have a different view of Qatar and how trustworthy they are,” he adds after the interviewer asserted that Witkoff had indeed made that comment.
The US ambassador then clarifies that both he and Witkoff are “playing for the same team, playing for the same president. I’m not going to criticize or condemn him.”
“He may be working in a way that ultimately is going to be helpful. Whether it’s with dealing with Hamas or dealing with Iran — I hope so,” Huckabee continues.
“But I have a lot of doubt about whether… negotiations with people who are inherently sponsoring evil things are going to be trustworthy to do the right thing, the best thing, and the good thing when it really comes down to it,” Huckabee adds.