Canada, France, UK And Others To Restrict Trade With Israeli Settlements In West Bank
Foreign ministers from 12 countries, including the United Kingdom, Canada, and France, have confirmed plans to restrict trade in goods with Israeli settlements in the West Bank after increasing attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinian villages in the occupied territory.
Other countries that signed the joint statement issued by the foreign ministers on Tuesday include Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and Sweden.
The move also comes as the Israeli government ramps up settlement construction in the West Bank, which some Western governments fear threatens a two-state solution.
The 12 countries said Israel must immediately halt the expansion of settlements and civilian administrative powers, ensure accountability for settler violence, and investigate allegations against Israeli forces.
British foreign minister, Ed Miliband, accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government of turning a “blind eye” to what he called “ethnic cleansing” by settlers in the West Bank.
Miliband told parliament that the UK government would introduce “an import ban on goods from illegal settlements in the occupied territories”, in a move coordinated with other countries.
More than 500,000 Israelis live in illegal settlements in the West Bank, alongside some three million Palestinians.
According to data from the Palestinian health ministry, Israeli forces or settlers have killed at least 1,105 Palestinians in the territory since the start of the Gaza war.
