Netanyahu’s pitch: Can Israel use crypto to evade economic sanctions?
Prime Minister Netanyahu mulls cryptocurrency as answer to economic sanctions on Israel, but there are few buyers.
Two days before the general elections, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that Israel should prepare to use cryptocurrency to circumvent potential sanctions on the country amid growing global isolation over its genocidal war on Gaza and settlement expansions in the occupied West Bank.
Netanyahu on Friday said that blockchain-based cryptocurrency is the solution to bypass the mounting economic sanctions that would keep the country out of the international financial system.
The Bank of Israel, the country’s central bank, rejected Netanyahu’s plan, and opposition parties said the incumbent prime minister’s vision is a recipe for disaster and increasing isolation.
If the ICJ verdict goes against Israel, it would further intensify calls for sanctions against the country, including restrictions on arms exports, trade and financial ties, as governments around the world face mounting pressure to hold Israeli officials accountable.