Israel has announced a series of retaliatory measures against the United Kingdom, including the closure of the British Consulate in East Jerusalem, following Britain’s decision to impose restrictions on goods produced in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar announced the measures on Tuesday, accusing the British government of taking what he described as a series of unilateral actions against Israel.
Saar said the British Consulate in Jerusalem, which is accredited to the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, would be closed as part of Israel’s response.
He also announced that British representatives would be removed from the international aid coordination centre for Gaza in Kiryat Gat and that Britain’s role in training Palestinian Authority security forces in the West Bank would be terminated.
In addition, Israel will bar 12 elected British officials and other British citizens from entering the country. Saar accused those targeted of involvement in activities Israel considers anti-Israel and antisemitic.
Announcing the measures, Saar said Israel would respond to governments that take actions against it.
“The British Consulate in Jerusalem will be closed,” Saar said.
“British representatives will be expelled from the international aid centre for Gaza in Kiryat Gat.”
He added that British participation in training Palestinian Authority forces in the West Bank would also be halted.
Saar further warned other countries against adopting similar measures, saying actions against Israel would be met with retaliation.
“The message to any government that harms us is clear: Whoever acts against Israel, Israel will act against him,” he said.
The Israeli decision came shortly after Britain announced a ban on imports of goods produced in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, one of London’s strongest measures yet against Israel’s settlement policies.
Speaking in Parliament, British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband accused Israel of carrying out “ethnic cleansing” in Palestine and reiterated the UK government’s position that Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank are unlawful.
Miliband said Britain should not contribute to the occupation by allowing settlement-produced goods to enter the British market.
“I do not believe the British people want us supporting the occupation by accepting products from settlements in our shops,” he said.
The UK government also announced tighter restrictions on arms sales to Israel amid growing international criticism of Israel’s military operations in Gaza and its policies in the occupied West Bank.
The latest diplomatic confrontation comes amid escalating violence involving Israeli settlers and Palestinian communities in the West Bank. Palestinian officials and rights groups have described some of the attacks as organised assaults, while concerns over continued settlement expansion have intensified international pressure on Israel.
Britain’s latest measures have further strained relations between London and Tel Aviv, with Israel responding by targeting diplomatic and security cooperation with the UK.
Following Miliband’s parliamentary statement, 12 countries also issued a joint declaration backing a two-state solution and signalling plans to introduce their own restrictions on trade involving Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
The developments mark a further deterioration in relations between Israel and several Western governments over the war in Gaza, settlement expansion and the future of the Palestinian territories.
