United Kingdom (UK) on Tuesday announced to impose a trade ban on goods made in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, joining the decision made by France and Canada. The move comes as the latest action to target Israel as it faces growing diplomatic isolation.
British Foreign Minister Ed Miliband said Britain could no longer simply call out injustice and suffering. He told the House of Commons that the country now had to act to oppose the expansion of settlements in the West Bank.
Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and Sweden also plan to issue restrictions on trade with the settlements, the nations’ foreign ministers said in a joint statement.
“Today we refuse to be bystanders to further sanction-trade-with-israeli-settlementsand to the destruction of the two-state solution,”said Miliband, while referring to Britain’s long-held support for the two-state idea.
Read more: US approves possible $5bn weapons sale to Saudi Arabia amid Middle East tensions
The U.S. through its ambassador to Israel has already criticised Britain’s new sanction, while two Israeli ministers have called for measures to be taken against Britain. Miliband stressed Britain’s position that the occupation in the West Bank is unlawful and that London believes that there is ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in the areas of the West Bank.
🇬🇧 Britain is preparing what Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband calls a “broad reset” of relations with Israel, with the government promising a more active approach to supporting Palestinians, The Guardian reports.
➤ Beyond the illegal settlement trade ban to be announced Tuesday,…
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) September 7, 2026
However, the UK government has not made clear how it will distinguish between goods originating in West Bank settlements and products that are made in Israel.
The two prominent Israeli ministers have reacted strongly to the sanction. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called for the British ambassador in Tel Aviv to be expelled, while National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir asked Netanyahu to close the British consulate in East Jerusalem.
