Singapore imposes financial sanctions, entry bans on 4 Israeli settlers for 'extremist violence' in West Bank
The four men have been involved in "egregious acts of extremist violence" against Palestinians in the West Bank, said Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
(From left) Israeli settlers Meir Ettinger, Ben-Zion Gopstein, Baruch Marzel and Elisha Yered were sanctioned by Singapore on Nov 21, 2025. (Photos: AFP/Jack Guez, Menahem Kahana, Reuters)
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SINGAPORE: Singapore will impose targeted financial sanctions and entry bans with immediate effect on four Israeli men for their involvement in "egregious acts of extremist violence" against Palestinians in the West Bank.
The four Israeli individuals are: Meir Mordechai Ettinger, Elisha Yered, Ben-Zion Gopstein and Baruch Marzel.
Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said on Friday (Nov 21) that the men's actions are "unlawful and undermine and jeopardise prospects for a two-state solution".
"Singapore reiterates its view that Israeli settlements in the West Bank are illegal under international law. Their presence and expansion will make it much harder to arrive at a viable two-state solution," it added.
The ministry said that as a firm supporter of international law and the two-state solution, Singapore opposes any unilateral attempts to change facts on the ground through acts that are illegal under international law.
"We call on the Israeli government to restrain acts of settler violence and to hold the perpetrators accountable."
Singapore's Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan said in parliament in September that Singapore would impose targeted sanctions on the leaders of radical right-wing settler groups or organisations responsible for acts of violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
He said that sanctions should not be assumed to make a major difference on the ground, and that the larger point of sanctions was to express Singapore's disapproval.
"It's often more a statement of principle and expression of disapproval. I wouldn't bank that, historically, any set of sanctions has been decisive in its own way," Dr Balakrishnan said.
"I'm not saying that we entered into sanctions lightly. It is, for us, a major statement, but I don't want to overstate its impact."
Financial institutions have been prohibited from dealing with the four men, and must immediately freeze any funds or assets belonging to them, according to a Nov 21 notice issued by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). Institutions are also required to inform the authorities of any business dealings involving the four men in Singapore.
The sanctions apply to any current and prospective financial relationships, an MAS spokesperson told CNA.
WHO ARE THE FOUR MEN?
The four men are prominent members or leading figures in the Hilltop Youth or Lehava group.
The Hilltop Youth comprises mainly extremist Jewish youth living in unauthorised outposts along hilltops in the West Bank.
Known for its commitment to establishing Jewish sovereignty over the entire West Bank, including using aggressive and militant methods, the group engages in attacks on Palestinians to “exact a price” for opposition to Hilltop Youth settlements.
Lehava is an ultra right-wing Jewish group that has engaged in repeated violent assaults on Palestinians and Arabs.
It was characterised in 2024 by former US President Joe Biden's administration as the “largest violent extremist organisation in Israel”.
The group also opposes the assimilation of non-Jews in Israel and inter-religious marriages involving Jews.
Lehava has been assessed by the European Union to have engaged in serious human rights abuses against Palestinians and violations of the right of Palestinians in the West Bank to property, and private and family life.
MEIR MORDECHAI ETTINGER
Ettinger, 34, is a leading figure in Hilltop Youth. He was involved in a deadly arson attack on a Palestinian home in the West Bank that killed two parents and their 18-month-old child in 2015.
He has also been sanctioned by the EU, Canada and Australia.
"He has contributed to the establishment of illegal settlements and outposts on Palestinian lands across the West Bank, employing and condoning tactics of intimidation, harassment and violence," said the EU's sanction tracker.
ELISHA YERED
Yered is a prominent affiliate of the Hilltop Youth.
In 2023, he was part of a group of armed settlers that shot at a Palestinian village, killing a 19-year-old Palestinian and wounding several others.
He was barred from the West Bank by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) for six months from September 2023.
Like Ettinger, Yered has also been sanctioned by the EU, Canada and Australia.
BEN-ZION GOPSTEIN
Gopstein, 56, is the co-founder and leader of Lehava.
He was convicted by an Israeli court in 2024 of inciting racism through inflammatory public statements about Arabs between 2012 and 2017.
He was also barred by the Israeli Supreme Court from running in the September 2019 Knesset elections over racist remarks.
According to the EU, Gopstein had previously openly called for a war against Palestinians.
Gopstein has been sanctioned by the EU and Canada.
BARUCH MARZEL
A prominent leader in the Lehava group, Marzel, 66, previously led the extremist Kach political party in the early 1990s. The party was banned in Israel in 1994.
He has long been identified with Kach’s goal of forcibly cleansing Israel of Arabs.
"Marzel calls for the creation of a Greater Israel where Palestinians would have no place. He openly calls for an ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians and denies the Palestinians’ right to their own land," the EU said in 2024.
Like Gopstein, Marzel was barred by the Israeli Supreme Court from running in the September 2019 Knesset elections over racist remarks.
He has been sanctioned by the EU.
