The United Kingdom has announced sanctions targeting Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, accusing the Israeli government of failing to stop what Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband described as the “ethnic cleansing” of Palestinians by settlers.
Miliband said the measures marked the “beginning of a new approach” to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, arguing that Britain would no longer simply condemn actions it considers unjust but would take concrete steps against them.
The sanctions, introduced alongside France and Canada, will prohibit goods from Israeli settlements and target companies and individuals involved in providing services that facilitate settlement expansion.
Britain will also introduce a wider sanctions framework over the next six to nine months and has announced a ban on advertisements promoting illegal West Bank settlements in the UK.
“The sanctions regime will target illegal settlements and settlement expansion, not Israel,” Miliband said.
Addressing MPs, the foreign secretary said: “The British government agrees that there is ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in areas of the West Bank, perpetrated by settler terrorists.
“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 United Nations defines ethnic cleansing as a “purposeful policy designed by one ethnic or religious group to remove by violent means another ethnic or religious group from certain areas”.
He also said the British government considers Israel’s occupation of the West Bank unlawful because of what he described as the consolidation of Israeli control, plans to establish permanent sovereignty and the expansion of settlements.
The position, he said, was consistent with a 2024 advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice and should influence Britain’s economic relationship with the occupied territory.
The announcement has triggered a sharp response from Israel.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar accused Miliband of making an “outrageous lie” and announced a series of retaliatory measures, including plans to close the UK’s consulate in East Jerusalem.
“We know that we have many friends in Britain.
“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,” Saar said.
Israel also announced that 11 British MPs, including Jeremy Corbyn and Diane Abbott, as well as all five sitting Green Party MPs, would be barred from entering the country. Saar accused them of “antisemitic and anti-Israel activity”.
The Israeli government further said British representatives from the International Gaza Support Center in Kiryat Gat would be removed and that UK activities supporting the training of Palestinian Authority forces in the West Bank would be ended.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog also criticised the British decision, saying it would “fall on the wrong side of history”.
“In the current context, it would be a gross interference in the democratic elections of a sovereign nation,” Herzog said.
He argued that the sanctions could ultimately hurt Palestinians and called on foreign governments to pursue dialogue and cooperation instead.
“Sanctions are not a solution,” he said.
The UK action was announced as Israel moves ahead with plans for about 1,200 settlement homes in the E1 area, east of Jerusalem.
The strategically important development has faced international opposition because of concerns that it could divide Palestinian areas and undermine the possibility of establishing a viable Palestinian state alongside Israel.
Miliband told MPs that the proposed E1 development could make a two-state solution “unviable” by “cutting through the heart of Palestine”.
The UK government has also criticised Israel’s conduct during the Gaza war, while maintaining that Israel has the right to defend itself.
Referring to the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, Miliband said it carried “terrible echoes of the centuries of persecution of the Jewish people” and stressed Israel had “the right to protect its people and defend its territory”.
However, he added: “that cannot justify what has happened in Gaza”.
“International humanitarian law imposes clear rules for states fighting wars, including to ensure access to food and medical supplies, to avoid mass displacement of civilians, and to avoid the targeting of civilians. Serious and international violations of this law, if proven, amount to war crimes.
“What has occurred, including the actions of the IDF (Israel Defense Forces), have been examined in depth by a number of organisations, including the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry.
“The conclusions of these reports represent increasing evidence that war crimes appear to have been committed, and we support legal processes to determine this.”
Miliband said international courts should determine whether Israel had committed genocide in Gaza.
Israel has repeatedly rejected accusations of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, insisting that its military operations comply with international law.
The foreign secretary also referred to his Jewish background and his personal connection to Israel, describing himself as “a proud British Jew”.
He said: “My personal story and that of thousands of British Jews is one of the many reasons why I say to anyone here or around the world who questions Israel’s right to exist as a homeland for the Jewish people – you are wrong, and we will call you out whenever you engage in this attempt at the erasure of Israel.”
However, Britain’s Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis condemned the sanctions, describing them as a “truly a dark day for British Jews”.
He accused the government of engaging in “little more than political flag bearing for mendacious anti-Israel rhetoric” and warned that the move could embolden those who “use hatred as a weapon against Jews”.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews also expressed “deep regret” over the decision and called on both governments to avoid allowing political interests to override national interests.
Miliband later told Jewish News that “any person who targets British Jews because of the actions of the Israeli government is an antisemite in my view”, adding that this position was “shared across the House of Commons”.
He described Israel’s response to the British announcement as “deeply regrettable”.
The UK’s Conservative opposition also criticised the government’s approach.
Shadow foreign secretary Tom Tugendhat said ministers were “enacting policies that the Foreign Office knows won’t work”.
While acknowledging that illegal settlements were wrong and that “some Israeli ministers have indulged in hateful propaganda and incitement”, Tugendhat said the government was oversimplifying a complex regional conflict.
Saar later said he had spoken with Tugendhat and Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, thanking them “for their firm opposition to the hostile Labour government’s announcement today and its series of anti-Israel policies since taking office”.
The United States also indicated that it would not follow Britain’s approach.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the White House had no comment on the joint action but added: “obviously we’re not going to do what the UK did”.
Earlier, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee warned that Washington would “without a doubt” respond to the sanctions and predicted a “huge economic impact on British businesses”.
The Palestinian presidency welcomed Britain’s decision, describing it as “an important step towards confronting Israel’s colonial system and its violations against the Palestinian people”.
Britain also announced sanctions against the financing arm of Lebanon’s Hezbollah and introduced additional measures against Iran in coordination with the US and European Union.
The latest measures come almost a year after the UK government recognised a Palestinian state and said it had a moral responsibility to help secure a peaceful future for both Israelis and Palestinians.
Israel opposes a two-state solution as currently proposed, arguing that any final agreement should emerge through direct negotiations with the Palestinians and that Palestinian statehood should not be established as a precondition.
The Palestinian Authority supports the creation of two states, while Hamas rejects Israel’s existence.
Hamas has nevertheless said it could accept an interim Palestinian state based on the 1967 de facto borders without formally recognising Israel, provided Palestinian refugees are granted a right of return.
Israel has established about 160 settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since capturing the territories during the 1967 Middle East war.
Around 700,000 Israeli settlers now live there alongside an estimated 3.3 million Palestinians.
Violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians and their property has increased since the Gaza war began following the Hamas-led attack on Israel in October 2023.
