The United States of America called on the Israeli authorities to provide urgent clarifications regarding human rights violations committed by the Israeli occupation forces against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, in violation of the “Leahy Law,” which stipulates a ban on supplying weapons to units that violate American standards for preserving human rights.

This came according to what was revealed by the newspaper “Israel Hayom” on Saturday evening. The purpose of the Leahy Act, which Congress passed in 1997, is to prevent the United States from engaging in serious crimes committed by foreign forces it supports, by cutting off aid to a specific unit if Washington has reliable information that the unit has committed a serious crime.

The newspaper reported, “The administration of US President Joe Biden called on Israel to provide it with urgent answers regarding a series of cases in which Israeli army units operating in the West Bank acted in violation of the ‘Leahy Law’.”

The report explained that the American request was accompanied by a warning that might result in “preventing Israeli occupation army forces operating in the occupied West Bank from receiving security assistance from the United States, if the explanations are not convincing to Washington.”

The Leahy Act stipulates that the United States provides security assistance only to military units that meet American standards for maintaining human rights. If there is a deviation from the standards, the law prohibits the supply of weapons to these units involved.

According to "Israel Hayom", Washington delivered its warning to Tel Aviv regarding the Israeli army's violations more than a month ago, and said that the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs is aware of this issue.

The report stated that "the International Law Department of the Israeli Military Prosecution and other legal bodies are in constant contact with the American side to provide answers to the cases for which Washington has asked Tel Aviv to provide clarifications."

The newspaper pointed out that Israel is required to submit its official response within less than two months, while it referred to a document confirming that “there is a high possibility that units in the Israeli army active in the occupied West Bank are involved” in violations of the Leahy Law.

About 10 days ago, the United States called on Israel to conduct an “urgent investigation” into the circumstances of the martyrdom of a 17-year-old Palestinian-American boy, who was killed by Israeli fire in the occupied West Bank.

US State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters: “We continue to cooperate closely with the Israeli government with the aim of obtaining the greatest amount of information, and we have requested that an urgent investigation be opened to clarify the circumstances of his killing and determine responsibilities.”

Tawfiq Hijazi (17 years old) was killed on Friday, January 19, in Al-Mazraa Al-Sharqiya near Ramallah. The American spokesman confirmed that he was “shocked” by the killing of the Palestinian young man, who also holds American citizenship, reiterating his call to contain the escalation.

Patel added, "We were clear about the tragic escalation of violence in the West Bank, and we call on all parties to avoid escalation." He explained that the Office of Palestinian Affairs and the US Embassy in Jerusalem were in contact with the family of the young victim.