EU Foreign Ministers Do Not Agree on Sanctions Against Israeli Minister Ben Gvir

The European Union's 27 foreign ministers met in Luxembourg on 15 June 2026 but did not reach the unanimous agreement required to impose sanctions on Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir. Kaja Kallas, the EU's foreign policy chief, said after the meeting that many member states had proposed sanctioning Ben Gvir.

"Many member states have also proposed to sanction Minister Ben Gvir, but no consensus on that was reached today," she said.

EU sanctions require the unanimous backing of all member states. A core of staunch Israeli allies within the bloc blocked the move from going forward. Calls to place Ben Gvir on an EU blacklist intensified last month after he posted a video appearing to mock pro-Palestinian activists who had been detained by Israeli forces aboard a Gaza-bound aid flotilla.

France responded by banning Ben Gvir from French territory and urged EU partners to follow with bloc-wide measures. Kallas said she would request a list of options for possible trade measures with illegal settlements in time for the next EU foreign ministers' meeting scheduled for July.

On the issue of trade with illegal settlements, many member states called for proposals from the European Commission.

Israel has maintained a military presence in the West Bank since 1967, with successive governments overseeing a steady expansion of settlements in the territory. That expansion has accelerated markedly under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's current coalition.

Excluding east Jerusalem, more than half a million Israeli citizens now reside in West Bank settlements alongside a Palestinian population of roughly three million.