Regavim Announces U.S. Sanctions Settlement That Protects Israelis in Judea and Samaria

Regavim said yesterday it secured a legal victory after reaching a settlement with the U.S. government in a federal lawsuit challenging Biden-era sanctions against Israelis and Israeli organizations connected to Judea and Samaria.

The case centered on Executive Order 14115, signed by former President Joe Biden in February 2024, which allowed sanctions against people accused of undermining peace, security, or stability in Judea and Samaria. Regavim and other plaintiffs argued that the policy was being used not only against violence, but against lawful Israeli civil society activity.

As part of the settlement, the U.S. government issued language that Regavim is now presenting as a major policy win. According to the statement, “The United States categorically rejects any policy that would infringe upon Israel’s sovereignty or target private organizations and Israeli citizens living in the West Bank.”

Regavim said the agreement also means the U.S. will not take sanctions action against the Israelis and organizations named in the case without proper legal protections. The case ended in a settlement, not a court ruling, meaning the court did not issue a final decision on the full legal arguments. Still, Regavim says the result sets an important precedent as other Western governments move forward with sanctions of their own.

Regavim is an Israeli Zionist civil society organization that focuses on land use, illegal construction, governance, and legal advocacy. The group is especially active in Judea and Samaria and Area C, where it monitors foreign-funded building projects and petitions Israeli authorities and courts to enforce planning and land laws.

The Biden-era sanctions order was originally presented by Washington as a response to extremist settler violence. Critics of the policy, including Regavim and its legal supporters, said the sanctions framework went beyond violent cases and threatened Israelis involved in advocacy, legal petitions, and support for Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria.

Professor Eugene Kontorovich of George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School, who advised the legal team, said the sanctions were being used against people who were not accused of violence.

“The people being sanctioned are not even alleged to have engaged in violence—certainly there’s no evidence that they engaged in violence—and in many cases they’re being sanctioned for what we would call advocacy,” he said.

The U.S. case now carries wider significance because Regavim is facing sanctions from Europe and Canada. In May 2026, the European Union sanctioned Regavim, its director general Meir Deutsch, and several other Israeli individuals and organizations. The measures include asset freezes and travel bans.

Canada followed in June, listing Regavim in its fifth round of sanctions connected to what it called extremist settler violence. Western governments have said the measures are aimed at people and organizations they accuse of supporting, facilitating, or encouraging violence or property damage against Palestinians.

Regavim rejects those claims and says it is being punished for legal and public activity against illegal construction and foreign interference in Judea and Samaria.

“We strongly condemn the smearing of our name in an announcement that links us to acts of violence,” Deutsch said after the Canadian sanctions. “As a research body that promotes policy, we have exposed European and Canadian involvement in illegal activity in Judea and Samaria over the years and acted against it legally and legitimately.”

Deutsch also called the sanctions “a disgraceful attempt to silence us and the Zionist majority in Israeli society.”

Regavim is now pointing to the U.S. settlement as it prepares for the next stage of its international fight. The organization has said it plans legal action against both the European Union and Canada, arguing that foreign governments are trying to silence Israeli civil society over Judea and Samaria.