Play store
Prominent Israeli figures, including former officials, military leaders and academics, have welcomed the UK’s new sanctions targeting Israeli settlements and settler activity in the occupied West Bank, describing the measures as a necessary response to escalating violence and settlement expansion.
A joint statement signed by former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, former military chief Dan Halutz, former ministers and diplomats, and David Harel, president of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, said the sanctions were directed at individuals involved in what they described as “Jewish terrorism”, rather than at Israel’s legitimacy as a state.
Harel said he opposed broad boycotts of Israel but supported measures targeting actions carried out by Israel in the West Bank.
He argued that halting settlement expansion and moving towards a two-state solution would serve Israel’s long-term interests as well as those of Palestinians.
Former Knesset speaker Avraham Burg also praised UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband’s move, calling it a “good beginning” and urging him not to stop.
The UK measures include restrictions on trade linked to Israeli settlements and sanctions targeting businesses, organisations and individuals associated with settlement expansion.
Britain has said the policy is intended to oppose the expansion of settlements and settler violence, which it says threaten the prospects for a two-state solution. France, Canada and several other European countries have backed similar measures.
The move has triggered a sharp Israeli backlash. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar accused Britain of interfering in Israel’s domestic affairs ahead of its October election.
Israel has also announced retaliatory measures, including plans to close the British consulate in East Jerusalem and restrictions on some British nationals.
Despite strong support for settlement policies among many Israeli voters, the sanctions have exposed growing opposition among parts of Israel’s political, security and academic establishment to settler violence and further expansion in the West Bank.
