UK West Bank sanctions trigger Israeli retaliation

The UK has announced sanctions targeting illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, prompting Israel to retaliate by closing Britain’s consulate in East Jerusalem and banning a group of UK MPs from entering the country.

Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said the UK West Bank sanctions marked the “beginning of a new approach” to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, accusing the Israeli government of turning a blind eye to what he described as the “ethnic cleansing” of Palestinians by settlers.

The measures will ban goods produced in Israeli settlements and target companies and individuals providing services that facilitate settlement expansion.

France and Canada announced measures alongside the UK, saying in a joint statement that the action represented “a further turning point in our approach to protecting the two-state solution”.

Israel announces counter-measures

Israel reacted angrily to the British announcement, with Foreign Minister Gideon Saar accusing Miliband of spreading an “outrageous lie”.

Saar announced the closure of the UK’s consulate in East Jerusalem, which represents the British government in Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza.

He also said 11 British MPs, including Jeremy Corbyn, Diane Abbott and all five sitting Green Party MPs, would be barred from entering Israel over what he described as “antisemitic and anti-Israel activity”.

British representatives at the International Gaza Support Center in Kiryat Gat in southern Israel will also be removed, while UK activities to train Palestinian Authority forces in the West Bank will be terminated.

“We know that we have many friends in Britain,” Saar said. “Unfortunately, we have a hostile Labour government that is consistently operating against the State of Israel, and it has left us no choice but to respond to its hostile actions.”

Israeli President Isaac Herzog said the sanctions would “fall on the wrong side of history” and called instead for dialogue and cooperation.

UK accuses Israel of ignoring settler violence

Announcing the measures in the House of Commons, Miliband said the British government believed Palestinians were being subjected to ethnic cleansing in parts of the West Bank.

“The British government agrees that there is ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in areas of the West Bank, perpetrated by settler terrorists,” he told MPs.

“And all too often the Israeli government has turned a blind eye to this and worse, members of it have made statements and taken actions to support the forced displacement of Palestinians.”

Miliband said the government’s position was that Israel’s occupation of the West Bank was unlawful because of the entrenchment of Israeli control, its intention to extend permanent sovereignty and the expansion of illegal settlements.

The position is in line with a 2024 advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice.

Over the next six to nine months, the UK West Bank sanctions will develop into what Miliband described as a “new comprehensive sanctions regime”. Britain will also prohibit the advertising of illegal West Bank settlements in the UK.

“The sanctions regime will target illegal settlements and settlement expansion, not Israel,” he said.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the measures were aimed “not at the Israeli people, but in support of the two-state solution”.

E1 settlement plans draw international concern

The British announcement follows Israel’s opening of tenders for around 1,200 settlement homes in the E1 area east of Jerusalem.

The strategically important area has long been a focus of international concern because of the potential effect of Israeli construction there on the territorial continuity of a future Palestinian state. Israel had held off on construction in E1 for decades amid international pressure.

Miliband said the development would make a two-state solution “unviable” by “cutting through the heart of Palestine”.

The UK also issued a statement with France, Canada, Denmark, Spain, Finland, Ireland, Iceland, Norway, Poland, Portugal and Sweden reaffirming their commitment to a two-state solution.

The countries said they would introduce national measures or support European restrictions on trade involving West Bank settlements.

Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem are considered illegal under international law. Israel has built around 160 settlements housing approximately 700,000 Jews since capturing the territories during the 1967 Middle East war. About 3.3 million Palestinians live alongside them.

Violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians and their property has increased since the Gaza war began following the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023.

Miliband addresses Gaza war

Miliband also addressed Israel’s conduct in Gaza, while stressing its right to protect its population following the 7 October attack.

He said the Hamas-led assault carried “terrible echoes of the centuries of persecution of the Jewish people”, but added that this “cannot justify what has happened in Gaza”.

The foreign secretary said international humanitarian law imposed clear obligations during war, including protecting civilians and ensuring access to food and medical supplies.

He cited investigations by international organisations into Israel’s conduct and said there was “increasing evidence that war crimes appear to have been committed”, while stressing that legal processes should determine whether crimes had taken place.

Israel has consistently rejected allegations of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, maintaining that its forces operate in accordance with international law.

Palestinians welcome British decision

The Palestinian presidency welcomed the sanctions, describing them as “an important step towards confronting Israel’s colonial system and its violations against the Palestinian people”.

The United States did not join the initiative. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington had no comment on the joint action, but added that the US was “obviously” not going to follow Britain’s approach.

The measures come almost a year after the UK recognised a Palestinian state, saying it had a moral responsibility to support a peaceful future for Israelis and Palestinians.

Israel rejects the establishment of a Palestinian state as a precondition for a negotiated settlement, while the Palestinian Authority supports a two-state solution.

Source: BBC

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