The British government is preparing a sweeping package of new measures against Israel that could include a ban on goods from Israeli settlements, additional sanctions targeting Israelis and organizations linked to the settlement movement, sanctions against more Israeli ministers, and tighter restrictions on arms exports, Middle East Eye reported Wednesday.

The measures are expected to be announced after Parliament returns from its summer recess in September and could mark a significant shift in Britain’s approach toward Israel under Prime Minister Andy Burnham. Multiple Whitehall and civil society sources said the proposals remain under discussion and have not yet been finalized, with Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband pushing for stronger action and consulting with civil society organizations.

Among the most significant proposals is a ban on goods originating in Israeli settlements. The Foreign Office is also examining whether companies and organizations with business or other links to settlements could face legal sanctions. Britain’s Charity Commission is meanwhile investigating several British charities accused of sending money to settlements. Former Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in June that “no UK charity should be supporting [settlements],” but stopped short of backing a ban on such donations. Burnham’s government is now exploring one.

Officials are also discussing new sanctions against individuals and organizations involved in the settlement movement in Judea and Samaria, as well as possible sanctions against additional Israeli ministers. Britain sanctioned Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich last year.

The government is simultaneously considering further restrictions on British military exports to Israel. In September 2024, Starmer’s government suspended around 30 arms export licenses after determining there was a “clear risk” that the equipment could be used in Gaza in serious violations of international humanitarian law. Direct exports of British-made F-35 components to Israel were suspended, while components entering the global F-35 spare-parts pool remained exempt. British-made components account for approximately 15 percent of every F-35.

Starmer’s government also green-lit $169 million in military goods for Israel, including 8,630 separate munitions exports classified as “bombs, grenades, torpedoes, mines, missiles and other similar munitions.” Banning exports of those military goods is now under discussion, although no concrete decision has been made.

A Foreign Office spokesperson said Wednesday that “settlements are illegal under international law, undermine the viability of a two-state solution and fuel insecurity for both Palestinians and Israelis.” The spokesperson added that British businesses have been advised not to conduct economic activity in settlements and warned of possible “reputational and potentially legal consequences.”

Discussions over a settlement goods ban began during the final months of Starmer’s premiership, and then-Middle East Minister Hamish Falconer confirmed in early July that Britain was examining the “technical difficulties” of implementing one. The Netherlands and Spain have already imposed bans, while Ireland is currently implementing one.

Burnham, who became prime minister in July, apologized shortly before taking office for the Starmer leadership’s early support for Israel’s war in Gaza and its refusal to back a ceasefire in 2023 and early 2024. He has since faced heavy pressure from Labour backbenchers to take stronger action against Israel and confirmed last month that his government was considering “further measures to deter unacceptable violence” in Judea and Samaria.

The proposed ban has drawn opposition from Labour Friends of Israel, which argued earlier this month that “a boycott of all trade with settlements is practically and politically impossible” and would affect Israeli businesses operating in settlement blocs as well as East Jerusalem and the Old City. But polling cited in the article found overwhelming support inside Labour, with 87 percent of party members backing a ban on settlement trade and just six percent opposed.

If adopted, the package would amount to a broad escalation in British policy toward Israel, potentially affecting settlement goods, companies and charities with settlement ties, Israeli individuals and ministers, and military exports — with the first measures expected after Parliament returns in September.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)