The UK and several allies have announced coordinatedsanctions against individuals and organisations that finance, support, or carry out violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
The measures, announced by the UK government today (9 June), were coordinated with partners including Canada, France, Norway, Australia, and New Zealand. Those targeted face asset freezes and, in some cases, travel bans and other restrictions.
The UK said the sanctions are intended to disrupt financial networks that enable Israeli settler groups to operate with impunity. Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper described settler violence and settlement expansion as illegal and a ‘threat to the viability of a two-state solution’. The UK government also warned that it could take further action if conditions in the West Bank do not improve.
Alongside the sanctions, the UK updated its guidance to explicitly advise British businesses against economic or financial activity in Israeli settlements, which are illegal under international law.
However, the UK government stressed that trade with Israel within its ‘internationally recognised borders’ remains supported, but drew a distinction between Israel and settlements in occupied territory.
