President Joe Biden directed top officials to prepare visa bans and sanctions for extremist Israeli settlers attacking and displacing Palestinians in the West Bank, according to an internal document read to POLITICO.

The Cabinet memo, sent to senior aides like Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Friday, orders their agencies “to develop policy options for expeditious action against those responsible for the conduct of violence in the West Bank.”

A senior U.S. official read sections of the memo to POLITICO on Saturday evening shortly after Biden published an op-ed in The Washington Post revealing his intentions for such a move. “The United States is prepared to take our own steps, including issuing visa bans against extremists attacking civilians in the West Bank,” he wrote in the op-ed.

The directive comes as the Biden administration aims to show that it’s supporting Palestinian civilians in need, even as it staunchly defends Israel’s retaliation against Hamas, and while members of the president’s party seek conditions on military aid to Washington’s ally.

The targets for reprimands are broadly defined in the memo. They include people or entities that “have directly or indirectly engaged in actions or policies that threaten the security or stability of the West Bank,” take “actions that intimidate civilians in the West Bank with the purpose or effect of forcing displacement actions in the West Bank,” or make moves “that constitute human rights abuses or violations and actions that significantly obstruct, disrupt or prevent efforts to achieve a two-state solution.”

The memo notes that Biden sees the settler-violence issue as a “serious threat” to peace among Israelis and Palestinians and destabilizing throughout the Middle East.

The decision to issue the directive came after intense debate on the topic, with national security adviser Jake Sullivan and deputy Jon Finer offering their direct input during a dedicated internal process, the official said.

POLITICO has not seen the memo, and the official was granted anonymity to read from a sensitive internal document. The White House declined to comment.

Israeli settlers have been moving into the West Bank for years, and incidents of violence were already growing after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power nearly a year ago. But the intensity of the long-running issue has grown since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people.

Yesh Din, an Israeli rights group, reports that 197 Palestinians in the West Bank have been killed by settlers or Israeli forces since Oct. 7. The United Nations reports that, in the same time frame, at least 121 Palestinian households — about 1,150 people, including 452 children — have been displaced by settler violence and access restrictions.

Daily incidents of settler violence rose from three a day earlier this year to seven since the attacks, per the United Nations. About 11 Palestinian communities have been completely abandoned in 2023 alone, according to the West Bank Protection Consortium, six of them since Hamas’ assault.

Biden has often condemned the rise in violence. “I continue to be alarmed about extremist settlers attacking Palestinians in the West Bank,” he said in October, equating the attacks to “pouring gasoline on fire.”

“They’re attacking Palestinians in places that they’re entitled to be, and it has to stop. They have to be held accountable,” Biden added.

On Friday, Blinken urged the Israeli government to confront “rising levels of settler extremist violence” during a call with Israeli war cabinet member Benny Gantz.

The president initially stood firmly behind Israel, saying it needed to strike back at the militant group in Gaza. Later, the administration faced pressure to alleviate the growing humanitarian crisis, eventually working with regional partners to get aid into Gaza for its 2.3 million residents starved of food, water, fuel and medical attention.

That was too little too late for some Biden voters who say they won’t pull the lever for him in 2024 over this Israel-Hamas policy.

Pressure from within Biden’s party is also mounting in Congress. Two Democrats on Thursday, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.), sent a letter urging him to do more to curb settler violence.

Progressives want the administration to call for a cease-fire in the war that has killed more than 11,000 people in Gaza, according to Hamas-led Gaza health authorities. Mainstream Democrats in the Senate and House are quietly discussing how to impose conditions on future military aid to Israel.

On Saturday evening, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who this week held a lunch for Senate Democrats to discuss the war, said he

While it might seem counterintuitive, a football season can prove to be both successful and disappointing. That is the place the St. Thomas Tommies find themselves after extending their home winning streak to 31 games with a 16-10 victory over the Valparaiso Beacons on Saturday at O’Shaughnessy Stadium.

The Tommies finished the season with a 7-1 record in the Pioneer Football League (8-3 overall), but the one loss prevented them from winning the conference title for the second season in a row. Drake finished 8-0, including a 52-21 victory over the Tommies on October 14 in Des Moines.

“We just posed for a senior picture out there (on the field),” St. Thomas coach Glenn Caruso said when he met with the media after the game, “and we were happy to be able to (continue the home winning streak). But taking that picture and not having that championship banner in your hands does not feel great.

“I love that our program is in a place where I can say that. It’s just a great reminder that it is such a competitive sport, that if you don’t do your job one day out of the year you put yourself in the position that we were in.

“That’s why we have to be so diligent, and on it all the time. That was the first loss in about two-and-half years in our conference, and we need to work even harder so we’re not in that position.”

Tommies running back Hope Adebayo, who rushed for 90 yards on 15 carries on Saturday, echoed Caruso’s words by saying that one off day can change the trajectory of the season.

“We’ll figure it out,” said the senior from Inver Grove Heights, who will be back with the Tommies next season. “Right now we can be sad, but as soon as we start training again we’re just on to the next.

“We’ll learn from this. I’m grateful for what happened and how it turned out, because it gives us a fire, and allows us to know what we can really achieve.”

The Beacons entered the game with a 3-7 record but were in it until the end. The Tommies won the opening coin toss and elected to receive. On the first play from scrimmage, quarterback Amari Powell connected with wide receiver Andrew McElroy on a 50-yard pass completion.

The drive ended five plays later with a 29-yard field goal by Stephen Shagen for a 3-0 Tommies lead.

The Tommies used a double-reverse, toss back to the quarterback to score a touchdown in the second quarter for a 10-0 lead when Powell found tight end Patrick Wagner in the end zone on a 30-yard completion.

Valparaiso kicked a field goal late in the quarter to give the Tommies a 10-3 lead at halftime. The Beacons tied the game late in the third quarter on a 23-yard touchdown pass.

The Tommies responded on the ensuing possession, with fullback Landon Reed scoring on a 9-yard run to cap a seven-play, 73-yard drive.

“Once again we found a way to be successful even though we weren’t pretty,” Caruso said. “That’s become our calling card, finding a way to be successful even when you’re not at your best.”

Caruso said injuries affected this team more than any other he has coached in his career. The Tommies dealt with a number of long-term injuries to starters, including quarterback Tak Tateoka, nose tackle Jordan Titus, cornerback Branden Smith and safety Ryan Calcagno.

“When you have starters that go down for long periods of time — if not the season — it definitely makes it harder,” Caruso said. “We’re very fortunate that we had enough depth to weather those storms.”

And as the season came to a close, he was pleased to at least be able to send 17 seniors out with a victory.

“This senior class has been through a lot,” Caruso said. “When you think about two unprecedented events happening — the move to Division I, not to mention a global pandemic right in the heart of their careers.

“The way they weathered it, the way they stabilized this program and this university I think was impressive, and I love them for it.”

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COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Gophers kept it close against No. 2 Ohio State in the first half on Saturday.

If they were Boy Scouts, and that moral victory were represented in the modest of merit badges, their vest was set ablaze in the second half.

After the Gophers trailed only 13-0 after 30 minutes, the Buckeyes bulldozed them in the opening 67 seconds of the second half, scoring 14 quick points in an eventual 37-3 loss at Ohio Stadium.

On the first play of the second half, running back Treyvon Henderson broke loose on a 75-yard touchdown run. On the U’s first play, quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis was strip-sacked; the Buckeyes recovered and returned it 15 yards. Three plays later, star receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. caught a touchdown pass.

The Gophers couldn’t stop, drop and roll to put out their incenration. Ohio State out-gained Minnesota 432-159.

Kaliakmanis threw an interception on the next series and it led to a Buckeyes field goal.

After Ohio State put together a 16-play touchdown drive to make it 37-0 early in the fourth quarter, many of the 104,019 fans wearing scarlet and gray headed for the exits.

No. 2 Ohio State (11-0, 8-0) might have started slower in a potential trap game, with The Game against fellow unbeaten Michigan coming next Saturday in Ann Arbor, but the Buckeyes shifted into high gear after the break.

The Gophers (5-6, 3-5 Big Ten) haven  lost three straight games and still need one more win to reach bowl eligibility. They have one last chance in the Battle for Paul Bunyan’s Axe against Wisconsin next Saturday.

Minnesota avoided its first shutout since the end of the 2017 season with a 54-yard field goal from Dragan Kesich midway through the fourth quarter.

The Buckeyes offense averaged 10 yards per play on its opening touchdown drive, but didn’t have the same success on the next four drives. Minnesota forced a three-and-out on the next drive. They were stopped inside Minnesota’s 30-yard line and forced to kick two field goals to extend a 13-0 lead.

Two of Minnesota’s offense drives went inside the Buckeyes 45-yard line, but instead of go for it on two different fourth-and-5 situations, head coach P.J. Fleck opted to punt.

The Buckeyes defense came into the game allowing less than 10 points per game, but Fleck opted against looking to strike in rare opportunities in Ohio State territory.

Minnesota punter Mark Crawford had a strong first half, with all five of his punts downed inside the 20-yard line. He had two 5o-plus-yard punts, long with two inside Buckeyes territory, and all of them forced Ohio State to sustain long drives.

Minnesota has now lost 12 straight games to Ohio State since a win at The Horseshoe in 2000.