Our statement in response to today’s announcement by the UK Foreign Secretary:
The UK government’s announcement today that it will ban trade in goods with Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, and expand sanctions beyond violent extremists, to include those responsible for deepening and entrenching the occupation, is an important and necessary development. We believe it should be supported by those that support the rights of the 7 million Israelis and 7 million Palestinians to live with freedom, dignity and security.
These new policies do not target Israel; they target the occupation. They draw a clear distinction between the legitimacy of the State of Israel and the settlement enterprise which is illegal under international law. Distinguishing settlements from Israel proper is not a judgement on where a border will ultimately fall, it’s a recognition that unilateral facts on the ground should not be allowed to decide that question in advance.
These measures are a direct response to continuous shifts in policy in Israel over many years which have deepened and entrenched the occupation with the aim of making it permanent. Israel’s current extremist government has crossed almost every red line in this regard. When the reality on the ground changes so drastically, the response by allies must change accordingly. This is why the United Kingdom is acting in unison with France and Canada, who have also announced today that they will ban trade with settlements.
Israel’s security concerns are serious and real, proven by the direct experience of terrorism, threats against its right to exist and the trauma and brutality of October 7th, 2023. But the occupation has never delivered security; it has entrenched instability, fuelled resentment, and pushed a negotiated resolution further out of reach. The settlement enterprise has dispossessed Palestinians of their land, often through extreme violence, and a system of occupation has denied them basic freedoms and rights. It has created a situation on the ground in which fundamental Jewish values of justice and respect for human dignity are eroded daily. And it remains one of the central obstacles to a negotiated political resolution which is the only way to bring long-term safety and security for Israelis and Palestinians alike.
Today’s announcement is the outcome of years of unchecked settlement expansion, escalating settler violence, and a governing coalition that has been explicit about its intentions – ending the possibility of Palestinian sovereignty. Standing at the site of the E1 settlement project, Minister Bezalel Smotrich said the plan “finally buries the idea of a Palestinian state.” National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir has been clear that “no Palestinian state will be established”. Defence Minister Israel Katz said just last week that the aim is to transfer the civilian population – 2 million Palestinians – out of Gaza via what he labels as ‘voluntary migration’.
The emboldening of the settlement enterprise has been possible because state institutions have been coopted in service of the settlement enterprise. This is precisely why it is highly unrealistic to expect that an election in October, and a potential new government will have the ability to seriously roll back the situation. During the year-long hiatus in Netanyahu’s premiership, the “change government” led by Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, there were 757 incidents of settler violence, and the government funnelled millions of shekels into road and transport infrastructure in the West Bank.
The international community has an obligation to act to prevent a scenario in which there can be no possible pathway towards a permanent political resolution to the conflict which is what the UK government is attempting to do today.
There are many different views in our community on this issue, and we know that many will be concerned about this shift in a policy and the impact it may have on UK-Israel relations. It is also the case that in the face of the situation on the ground, many British Jews support the UK government taking robust action against the occupation.
So, we are clear that today’s announcement is not anti-Israel, and it is certainly not antisemitic. It is also not a boycott of Israel, and it is not directed at all Israelis. It draws a clear line between sovereign Israel and the occupation. This is a distinction the UK and its closest allies have long upheld, and one that today’s announcement reinforces.
This is a significant step, but these policy announcements aren’t the end goal. They are a step on a pathway towards something better; a future reality in which a political resolution can guarantee and safeguard the rights of both Israelis and Palestinians. The last three years have proven how insecure, dangerous and violent the status quo is. We are committed to working with UK government and our partners in the region to ensure that Israelis and Palestinians are supported in achieving a future characterised by security and freedom.
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