Key facts
- UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband is set to announce a ban on trade with illegal Israeli settlements.
- The ban aims to comply with a July 2024 ICJ advisory opinion declaring Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory illegal.
- UN expert Francesca Albanese supports the ban and urges broader measures to implement the ICJ ruling.
- US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee criticized the UK's stance, accusing the government of 'Jew hatred'.
- The Israeli government has threatened retaliation against Britain for the expected measures.
A United Nations expert has urged the UK to implement a significant policy shift regarding Israel, advocating for a ban on trade with settlements and broader measures to address the occupation. Francesca Albanese, the UN's Special Rapporteur on the occupied territories, stated that a ban on settlement goods, expected to be announced by UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, is an important step.
Miliband has vowed to take more decisive action against Israeli settlements and restrictions on aid into Gaza. However, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee criticized the UK's stance, accusing the government of 'Jew hatred' and lacking facts. The Israeli foreign ministry also disputed claims of blocking aid.
Albanese emphasized that a trade ban should be part of 'a true paradigm shift' that implements the 2024 International Court of Justice (ICJ) advisory opinion, which declared Israel's presence in the occupied territories unlawful. She argued that obligations extend to not recognizing the situation as legal and not rendering aid or assistance in maintaining it.
She suggested the UK's measures should extend beyond goods like agricultural products and cosmetics to include trade in services, suspension of British intelligence cooperation, and all arms licensing. Albanese warned that without comprehensive steps, the changes would be seen as mere communication strategy rather than a reckoning.
Furthermore, Albanese called on the UK to address the tender for the E1 settlement, which could sever East Jerusalem from the West Bank, and to threaten sanctions against firms involved in its construction. She also urged the UK to support South Africa's case at the ICJ and Nicaragua's case against Germany, emphasizing the importance of international accountability mechanisms.
This comes amid heightened tensions, including comments from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's son, Yair Netanyahu, questioning British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, which prompted a response from US President Donald Trump indicating a potential shift in US support for the UK. Argentinian President Javier Milei has also asserted Argentina's claim to the islands.