Britain has sanctioned a loosely defined group of violent Right-wing extremists in a major crackdown on settler violence in the West Bank.

On Friday, the Foreign Office rolled out a second round of sanctions to address an “unprecedented rise” in Israeli settler violence in the occupied West Bank where at least 800 incidents of violence have been reported since last October, obscured by the war in Gaza.

“The Israeli authorities must clamp down on those responsible. The UK will not hesitate to take further action if needed, including through further sanctions,” Lord David Cameron said in a statement, decrying extremist settlers for “undermining security” and “threatening prospects for peace”.

Friday’s sanctions targeted individuals “responsible for perpetrating human rights abuses” against Palestinians in the West Bank and groups “known to have supported, indicted and promoted violence” against them.

Travel bans and asset freezes have been slapped on four individuals as well as the extreme far-right group Lehava and Hilltop Youth, a term commonly used to describe young violent settlers but not representing an actual organisation.

Britain now joins the European Union which blacklisted Lehava last month and the United States which targeted its founder Bentzi Gopstein, an associate of National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

Previous rounds of sanctions by Britain and other countries appear to have spooked Israeli officials who have long been accused of turning a blind eye to violence against Palestinians and their gradual displacement from the West Bank.