Tel Aviv (TDI): Israel has ordered the British consulate in East Jerusalem to close, with diplomats assigned there set to lose their accreditation within 30 days, Reuters reported citing an Israeli official and a source familiar with the matter.
The source said British representatives working with a US-led Gaza coordination mission in Israel, along with British diplomats based in Ramallah, would be required to leave within seven days.
The move came after Britain imposed sanctions targeting goods produced in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, in coordination with France and Canada.
The British government announced the trade restrictions Tuesday as part of growing international pressure on Israel over violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians and the continued expansion of settlements.
Read More: UK Plans Trade Ban on Israeli Settlement Goods, Services in West Bank
British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband told the House of Commons that Britain could no longer simply speak out against injustice and suffering, but had to take concrete action.
“Today we refuse to be bystanders to further suffering and to the destruction of the two-state solution,” Miliband said, reaffirming Britain’s longstanding support for the establishment of two states.
Israel’s decision marks a significant escalation in diplomatic tensions with Britain and comes as several Western countries increase pressure over Israeli settlement policies in the occupied West Bank.
London has repeatedly criticized settlement expansion, arguing that continued construction threatens the prospects of a viable Palestinian state.
Britain’s latest trade restrictions, coordinated with France and Canada, are among a growing series of measures by Western governments targeting Israeli settlement activity.
Read More: Netanyahu Signals Continued Israeli Military Presence in Gaza as Ceasefire Questions Grow
The developments come amid increasing international concern over the humanitarian situation in Gaza and rising violence in the occupied West Bank.
The diplomatic dispute also highlights the widening gap between Israel and some of its traditional Western partners over settlement expansion and the future of the two-state solution.
