UK Set to Impose Sanctions on Israeli Settlements in West Bank

Britain is expected to outline new economic restrictions targeting settlements in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday, in a significant toughening of British government policy toward the Israeli government. The package of measures, expected to include a trade ban on goods produced in the settlements, are set to be announced on Tuesday in Parliament by Ed Miliband, who became Britain’s foreign secretary in July. The decision is one of the clearest shifts in British foreign policy since Andy Burnham became prime minister in the same month, succeeding Keir Starmer who was elected in 2024. Some analysts say Britain’s move will likely be followed by other countries also imposing harder-hitting and broader sanctions. Before the statement in Parliament, Pat McFadden, a senior British cabinet minister, said that the overriding drive behind the plan was to keep alive the possibility of a two-state solution, a proposed framework to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by establishing an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel. “What we’re really concerned about is that there is an attempt, openly by some Israeli ministers, to erase that possibility through the expansion of these settlements in the West Bank,” he told the broadcaster Sky News. We are having trouble retrieving the article content. Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. Already a subscriber? Log in . Want all of The Times? Subscribe .