UK and 11 other countries impose sanctions on Israeli West Bank settlements, triggering Israeli retaliation

On September 8, 2026, UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband announced a ban on imports of goods from Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, along with sanctions on companies facilitating settlement expansion and tightened arms export restrictions. Eleven other nations including France, Canada, Spain, and Norway joined the UK in a joint statement pledging similar trade restrictions. Israel responded with four countermeasures: ordering the closure of the British consulate in East Jerusalem within 30 days, removing British representatives from the International Gaza Support Center, terminating British training of Palestinian Authority forces, and banning entry to 12 British officials. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated the US would not follow the UK's lead but did not condemn the move.