LONDON — Britain on Tuesday announced a trade ban on goods made in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, coordinated with France and Canada, Foreign Minister Ed Miliband told the House of Commons. Miliband said London could no longer only “call out†injustice and must “act†against settlement expansion that he said threatens a two-state solution.
Miliband said Britain views the West Bank occupation as unlawful and that London believes ethnic cleansing of Palestinians is occurring in parts of the territory. Settlement goods are mainly agricultural and a tiny share of Israel’s trade; Britain’s annual bilateral trade with Israel is about £6 billion ($8.1 billion). The UK joins the Netherlands, Ireland, Belgium, Spain, and Norway in banning or planning to ban such goods.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called for expulsion of the British ambassador; National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir asked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to close the British Consulate in East Jerusalem. President Isaac Herzog accused Britain of interfering in Israel’s October election. U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told the BBC the sanctions amounted to “discrimination against the Jewish people.â€
Concerns center on Israel’s E1 settlement project near Jerusalem. Smotrich on Tuesday also advanced plans for 1,000 new homes in two other West Bank settlements. The United Nations and most countries regard settlements as illegal under international law; Israel disputes that.
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