Israeli organisation Amana, a movement that backs developing settlements in the occupied West Bank, has denounced sanctions imposed on it by the United States the previous day, AFP reports.

A statement by the group said the sanctions “result from baseless slander directed at Amana by hostile and extremist elements”.

“Had the US administration bothered to verify the claims … it would have found them to be factually unfounded and refrained from taking action against us,” the statement said.