US Secretary of State accused of ignoring accusations of Israeli abuses: report

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has failed to act on a special State Department panel recommendation to "disqualify multiple Israeli military and police units from receiving U.S. aid after reviewing allegations that they committed serious human rights abuses," US news outlet ProPublica reports.

Quoting current and former State Department officials, ProPublica says the panel – the Israel Leahy Vetting Forum – gave its recommendation months ago based on West Bank incidents that took place prior to the break of the ongoing war in Gaza.

The incidents include "extrajudicial killings by the Israeli Border Police; an incident in which a battalion gagged, handcuffed and left an elderly Palestinian American man for dead; and an allegation that interrogators tortured and raped a teenager who had been accused of throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails," the outlet says.

"They’ve been sitting in his briefcase since then," one official said.

A State Department spokesperson told ProPublica that "this process is one that demands a careful and full review".