The UK accused the Israeli government of turning a blind eye to the “ethnic cleansing” of Palestinians as Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband triggered a diplomatic row by announcing sanctions on illegal West Bank settlements.
Both Israel and the US criticised the UK’s stance, which will see a ban on imports from illegal settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and sanctions on individuals and firms providing services to settlers.
Israel announced its own counter measures after Mr Miliband set out the sanctions as part of a reset in the way the Labour Government will deal with Benjamin Netanyahu’s administration.
Mr Miliband said the British Government believed the occupation of the West Bank as a whole was unlawful, going beyond the previous position that only described the settlements themselves as illegal.
And he said there was increasing evidence that Israel had committed war crimes in Gaza.
The reset in the UK’s approach under Andy Burnham has already prompted a backlash from Donald Trump’s White House and Benjamin Netanyahu’s Israel.
Israeli foreign minister Gideon Saar announced that the UK’s consulate in Jerusalem would be closed as part of a package of retaliatory measures.
