The United Kingdom (UK) has declared Israeli settlers terrorists for carrying out ethnic cleansing against Palestinians. Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband today said the settlers’ actions have received backing from parts of the Israeli government, according to The Telegraph.
In the UK government’s strongest condemnation yet, Miliband announced a series of sanctions targeting trade and services linked to Israeli settlements.
The measures include:
- A ban on imports from illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied territories.
- Sanctions on services such as construction and financing linked to settlements.
- A ban on UK advertising for properties in illegal settlements.
- Personal sanctions against individuals accused of supporting settler violence.
- Restrictions on arms licences and exports that materially contribute to the occupation.
Miliband also said the UK now considers Israel’s occupation of the West Bank unlawful in its entirety.
He told Parliament that Palestinians in parts of the West Bank were facing ethnic cleansing carried out by what he described as “settler terrorists.” He also accused the Israeli government of failing to stop the violence and said some Israeli officials had supported the forced displacement of Palestinians.
The UK expects legislation covering the trade ban and sanctions to be introduced within nine months.
Israel rejected the British position. The occupation’s foreign minister Gideon Saar accused Miliband of spreading “outrageous lies” and said Britain was acting against Israel.
Saar also announced retaliatory measures, including plans to close the UK consulate in Jerusalem and exclude Britain from the US-led Gaza coordination mission.
The UK is among 12 countries announcing sanctions on trade with Israeli settlements, alongside Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Sweden.
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