London sanctions settlements in the West Bank

Middle East conflict

London sanctions settlements in the West Bank

The British Labor government under Prime Minister Andy Burnham is taking a tougher line towards Israel’s settlement policy. Sharp criticism is already coming from Israel and the USA.

Great Britain prohibits the import of goods from illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank. This is part of a larger realignment of relations with Israel, said Foreign Minister Ed Miliband in a speech to the House of Commons in London. In the future, Great Britain will officially view not only Israeli settlements, but the entire Israeli occupation of the West Bank as illegal. The import of goods from settlements will therefore be prohibited. In addition, anyone who supports or finances the construction of new illegal settlements will also be subject to sanctions, Miliband continued.

FranceCanada and Denmark as well as other countries joined the British position in a joint statement and also announced import bans and sanctions. Germany is not one of them.

Miliband, who himself comes from a Jewish family, expressly emphasized Israel’s right to exist, which should not be questioned. However, it is about keeping the possibility of a two-state solution alive. This is being blatantly undermined by parts of the Israeli government. In the West Bank There is also sometimes “ethnic cleansing” by militant settlers, which is tolerated and in some cases even supported by the government, said Miliband. He added: “What we seek today is to save the only basis for peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians: the two-state solution.”

There was already criticism before Miliband’s speech Israel and given the initiative by the US ambassador to Israel. According to his office, Israel’s President Izchak Herzog criticized the move as a “serious misjudgment” and at the same time accused Great Britain of interfering in the upcoming elections in Israel.

Israel’s right-wing police minister Itamar Ben-Gvir X demanded in advance that his country should recognize Argentina’s claim to the Falkland Islands. He later wrote that he was prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for the closure of the British consulate in East Jerusalem. The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, accused the British government of “discrimination against the Jewish people” on the BBC. Britain’s Prime Minister Andy Burnham had US President Donald Trump According to reports, they had already been informed of the plans in advance.

The sanctions come at a time when violence by radical settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank is increasing and Israeli security forces are hardly taking action against it. At the same time, the Israeli settlements in the area conquered in 1967 are being massively expanded by the right-wing religious government.