WASHINGTON, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Nearly 90 Democratic lawmakers urged U.S. President Joe Biden to sanction members of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government over anti-Palestinian violence in the West Bank, according to a letter released on Thursday.

Comments Monday by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich were the strongest display yet of how Trump’s election has emboldened Israeli hard-liners.

Israel’s far-right minister of finance said that Donald Trump’s presidential election win means the “ time has come ” to annex the West Bank.

Israel's far-right finance minister said on Monday he hoped Israel would extend sovereignty into the occupied West Bank in 2025 and that he would push the government to engage the incoming Trump administration to gain Washington's support.

Nearly 90 congressional Democrats are calling on President Joe Biden to impose sanctions on two far-right Israeli government officials for their roles in inciting settler violence in the West Bank.

The lawmakers said Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich are encouraging violent attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.

Democrats in the House and Senate are calling on President Biden to sanction two controversial Israeli ministers, saying the two men have promoted violence against Palestinians and are pushing for annexation of territory that undermines U.

Nearly 90 Democratic lawmakers urge Biden to sanction Israeli ministers Smotrich and Ben-Gvir for promoting settler violence and destabilizing the West Bank.