UK threatens sanctions against firms linked to Israel's illegal settlements in West Bank

British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband on Monday warned companies and individuals against bidding for construction projects linked to illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, citing potential sanctions. "We urge businesses and individuals not to proceed with bids for E1 construction tenders," Miliband said in a statement. He warned that participation in the project could carry legal and reputational consequences, including the risk of involvement in serious breaches of international law. "I want to be very clear with those considering engaging in the tendering process: we have created new powers allowing us to sanction individuals and companies involved in the construction of illegal settlements such as E1," Miliband said. "This UK Government will not accept the continued displacement of Palestinians and the unlawful occupation that persists," he added. Miliband also said the government was committed to introducing legislation to ban goods imported from illegal settlements and take action against services that finance or facilitate them. "The British people do not want to be supporting the construction of illegal settlements," he said. The British government also condemned escalating violence by occupiers in the occupied West Bank, including recent attacks on officials from France, Belgium and Poland, a representative of the Catholic Church and a US journalist. "We will not be bystanders in the destruction of the two-state solution," Miliband said.