Following the dramatic measures taken by Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar against British missions in Israel, senior officials in London are now threatening to significantly intensify sanctions, senior British officials told Channel 12 News.

The officials said that London is considering expanding the sanctions package to include direct and extensive harm to the Israeli economy. Some of the measures being considered are sanctions against Israeli banks that finance construction or provide mortgages to Jewish communities in Yehuda and Shomron—for example, banks that provide mortgages for housing and construction beyond the Green Line, as well as possible measures against retail chains.

According to the senior officials, discussions about the expanded sanctions package are currently underway and are expected to come to fruition within six to nine months.

The escalating diplomatic confrontation began after British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband decided to impose new sanctions over construction in the E1 area. Britain’s initial measures include a ban on purchasing products from settlements, restrictions on arms exports and sanctions against entities providing financing and construction services in the territories.

In response, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced severe countermeasures, including the closure of the British Consulate in Jerusalem, the ouster of UK representatives from the international Gaza aid center in Kiryat Gat, the ouster of the British team that trains Palestinian Authority forces in Yehuda and Shomron, and entry bans against 12 British elected officials and citizens involved in anti-Israel activity.

UK officials slammed the countermeasures, but Sa’ar rejected the claims outright, saying the response was proportionate and necessary, emphasizing that the UK is implementing a unilateral and discriminatory policy that encourages antisemitism while completely disregarding the Palestinian Authority’s support for terrorism. He also noted that the Palestinian Authority itself would not be immune from repercussions over its involvement in the move.

Sa’ar rejected Miliband’s claims regarding construction in E1, emphasizing that the British measure runs contrary to historical facts, harms tens of thousands of Palestinian workers, and constitutes blatant and unacceptable interference in Israel’s election campaign for domestic political reasons.

At the center of the diplomatic controversy is Israel’s decision to advance construction in the disputed E1 area, which connects Ma’ale Adumim with Jerusalem. Western countries insist that construction there would sever the territorial continuity of a future Palestinian state, thereby thwarting the implementation of the so-called “two-state solution.”

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)