UK Announces New Israel Sanctions, Accuses Settlers of ‘Ethnic Cleansing’

“I do not believe that the British people want us supporting the occupation by accepting products from settlements in our shops and supermarkets,” Miliband said.

By United with Israel Staff

British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband accused Israel on Tuesday of turning a blind eye to the “ethnic cleansing” of Palestinians in parts of Judea and Samaria as he announced sweeping sanctions targeting Israeli communities in the territory.

“The British government agrees that there is ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in areas of the West Bank, perpetrated by settler terrorists,” Miliband told lawmakers in the House of Commons.

He accused the Israeli government of failing to stop the alleged campaign and claimed that some of its members had actively supported Palestinian displacement.

“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.

Miliband also leveled severe accusations against Israel over the war in Gaza, citing what he described as “increasing evidence that war crimes appear to have been committed.”

He said he felt a “deep sense of shame about what has unfolded in Palestine under the eyes of the international community” and described the situation in Gaza as a stain on Britain’s conscience.

The foreign secretary announced that Britain would ban imports of goods produced in Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria, part of what he presented as a new approach aimed at exerting economic pressure on Israel and preserving the possibility of establishing a Palestinian state.

“I do not believe that the British people want us supporting the occupation by accepting products from settlements in our shops and supermarkets,” Miliband said.

He repeatedly promoted a two-state solution during his address, arguing that Israeli construction in Judea and Samaria was threatening its viability.

Miliband said Britain’s dispute was with the Israeli government rather than its people, declaring, “Our argument is not with the people of Israel, with whom the UK has unshakeable bonds. Our argument is with the conduct of its government.”

The British announcement was part of a broader coordinated move by 12 countries against Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria.

In an official joint statement Tuesday, the foreign ministers of Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the UK accused Israel of undermining the possibility of a two-state solution through settlement expansion and alleged settler violence.

“Today, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the UK confirm their intention to introduce national and/or support European restrictions on trade in goods with settlements which are illegal under international law, or that they are actively considering these and other measures,” the statement said.

Britain, France and Canada, however, explicitly pledged to introduce national measures banning trade in settlement goods.

“The UK, France and Canada welcome the important action already taken by Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands, Norway and Belgium and will bring forward national measures to ban trade in settlement goods,” the statement said.

The foreign ministers made protecting the establishment of a Palestinian state the central justification for the coordinated measures.

“Together, we are resolute: the two-state solution must be protected, and we will take action in pursuit of a just and lasting peace,” they said.

The 12 governments also declared that they “firmly oppose actions tantamount to the annexation of Palestinian land and forcible displacement of the Palestinian population.”

They demanded that Israel “immediately halt the expansion of settlements and civilian administrative powers,” ensure accountability for alleged settler violence and investigate allegations against Israeli forces.

The statement nevertheless recognized Israel’s “legitimate security interests” and condemned Hamas’s Oct. 7 massacre as “the worst antisemitic massacre since the Holocaust.”

The measures follow mounting international pressure over Israel’s advancement of the E1 settlement project between Jerusalem and Ma’ale Adumim. Britain and other countries have argued that construction there would undermine the territorial continuity of a future Palestinian state.

Israeli and American officials fiercely condemned the British initiative ahead of its announcement. President Isaac Herzog called the sanctions a “grave miscalculation,” Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich demanded the expulsion of the British ambassador, and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee accused Britain of discriminating against Israel and the Jewish people.

Israel has also warned that it will retaliate. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said last week, “If Britain acts against Israel, Israel will act against Britain.”