The United Kingdom has announced sanctions targeting illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, in a move Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said signalled a new approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel responded by saying it would close the UK consulate in East Jerusalem and take further measures against British activities.
Miliband told MPs that the British government agreed there was ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in parts of the West Bank, which he said was carried out by settler extremists. He accused the Israeli government of too often failing to stop such actions and said some members had supported the forced displacement of Palestinians through statements or actions.
The measures will prohibit settlement goods and target companies and individuals that provide services for settlement expansion. The UK also plans to ban advertising for illegal West Bank settlements. Miliband said a comprehensive sanctions framework would be introduced over the next six to nine months and stressed that the measures were directed at settlements and their expansion, rather than Israel itself.
International support and Israeli response
The announcement was made alongside France and Canada. In a joint statement, the three countries said the action represented a further change in efforts to protect the two-state solution. The UK also joined 11 other countries in saying they would introduce national measures, or support European restrictions, on trade in goods from West Bank settlements.
Miliband said Israel’s recent tender process for about 1,200 settlement homes in the E1 area east of Jerusalem made the policy shift necessary. He said development there would make a two-state solution unworkable by dividing Palestinian territory.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar called Miliband’s allegation an outrageous lie. He said Israel would close the British consulate, which represents the UK government in Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza. Saar also said British representatives would be removed from the International Gaza Support Center in Kiryat Gat and that UK activities training Palestinian Authority forces in the West Bank would end.
Israel said 11 UK MPs, including Jeremy Corbyn, Diane Abbott and the five sitting Green Party MPs, would be barred from entering the country over what Saar described as antisemitic and anti-Israel activity. President Isaac Herzog said sanctions would be counterproductive and urged foreign governments to pursue dialogue and cooperation instead.
The Palestinian presidency welcomed the UK decision, calling it an important step against what it described as Israel’s colonial system and violations against Palestinians. The United States said it would not follow the British approach.
Miliband also reaffirmed Israel’s right to exist and to defend its people, while saying this could not justify events in Gaza. He said reports had produced increasing evidence that war crimes may have been committed and that international courts should determine legal questions, including whether genocide had occurred. Israeli leaders have consistently rejected allegations of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Source: BBC News
