Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar warned Tuesday that Israel will retaliate if Britain moves forward with sanctions over Israeli construction in the E1 area, escalating a growing diplomatic clash between Israel and London over development between Yerushalayim and Ma’ale Adumim.
“If Britain acts against Israel, Israel will act against Britain,” Sa’ar said in an excerpt from a Hebrew-language podcast interview with Ynet.
The foreign minister said Jerusalem is treating the prospect of British punitive measures seriously, while accusing the British government of allowing internal political pressures to drive an increasingly hostile approach toward Israel.
“There is a government there that is systematically acting against Israel. It has already harmed defense exports to us and imposed sanctions on ministers. What guides it is its domestic politics, and at the end of the month the Labour Party conference is convening,” he said.
Pressed on what steps Jerusalem might take against Britain, Sa’ar declined to reveal specifics but indicated that Israeli officials are already preparing possible retaliatory measures.
“Why hint at it? What I’ve said is enough. We are preparing. If they make a mistake, there will be a response,” he replied.
Sa’ar issued the warning shortly after British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband told lawmakers that Israel’s plans for E1 amounted to “the crossing of a red line.” According to Miliband, construction in the area would separate territory envisioned for a future Palestinian state and “risks making a Palestinian state unviable.”
“This government will not acquiesce in the destruction of the two-state solution,” Miliband said. “We will act and I will set out a comprehensive set of measures in the coming weeks.”
Tensions between the two countries have intensified following the publication of a tender covering seven residential compounds in E1, totaling 1,234 housing units. The developments are included among approximately 3,400 housing units that received approval for the area last August.
Miliband swiftly denounced the tender and called on Israel to cancel it. He said he had raised the matter directly with Sa’ar, while the British Foreign Office summoned Israel’s Chargé d’Affaires over the issue.
The British foreign secretary also made clear that London was considering further action against Israel in response to its policies.
“Britain will not stand back and accept the destruction of the two-state solution. In the coming weeks we will set out a comprehensive set of measures to respond to Israeli government policies, protect the viability of the Palestinian state, target sanctions at those who participate in illegal settlement expansion and support a just and lasting peace for Israelis and Palestinians,” the UK Foreign Secretary declared.
Sa’ar rejected the British criticism, taking issue both with Miliband’s position and his choice of language while accusing London of applying a double standard to Israel.
“Britain itself still controls colonial territories thousands of miles from its shores. It is absurd for Britain to lecture the Jewish people about where they may live in their historic tiny homeland, when the Jewish people’s connection and right to this land is the most extensively documented of any people in human history.”
Sa’ar also challenged Britain’s suggestion that the latest tender reflected a new policy decision by the Israeli government, saying the underlying development plan had already been approved last year.
“There have been no new decisions regarding development in E1. The decision was made in 2025. The tender process has been underway for several months, with certain tender documents published only in recent days. The British Foreign Secretary’s statement is entirely one-sided.”
Britain’s Chief Rabbi, Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis, has also weighed in on the dispute. During a meeting with Miliband last week, Rabbi Mirvis urged the foreign secretary to reconsider proposed sanctions and trade restrictions affecting Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, warning that such measures could damage efforts toward peace while also carrying consequences for Britain’s Jewish community.
{Matzav.com}
