UK threatens to expel Israeli diplomats over British consulate closure

The UK has threatened to expel 27 Israeli diplomats if Israel goes ahead with its decision to shutter the British consulate in East Jerusalem, itself an announcement made following the Foreign Secretary’s announcement of a ban on West Bank goods.

According to Israel’s Ynet outlet, the UK’s ambassador to Israel, Simon Walters, has told Israeli officials that if the Jerusalem consulate, where 27 British diplomats work, is closed, Britain will respond by expelling one Israeli diplomat for every British diplomat affected.

The British consulate in East Jerusalem has long operated as a de facto embassy to the Palestinian Authority, while the embassy itself remains in Tel Aviv, despite the fact that Jerusalem is Israel’s capital. The United States is one of a number of countries to have moved its embassy to Jerusalem in recent years.

Last month Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband announced that it would officially recognise Israel’s presence in the West Bank as illegal under international law, a position which Israel strongly disputes. As well as a ban on settlement goods, the UK also led a coalition of countries in announcing sanctions against individuals and companies which it claims support, facilitate or profit from settlement activity. One of the responses from the Israeli authorities was to announce that the British consulate in East Jerusalem would be closed, and that its British staff had 30 days in which to leave the country.

Other measures announced by Israel’s Foreign Minister, Gideon Saar, in response to the UK’s actions included removing British representatives from the international aid coordination centre for Gaza, and announcing that 12 individuals, mostly MPs, would be banned from entering Israel.

Last month reports suggested that the Foreign Office was aware that responding to closure of the British consulate before the election would likely benefit incumbent Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in his bid for re-election. It is unclear whether the UK was threatening to proceed with expelling Israeli diplomats prior to the vote, which takes place on 27 October, or would instead wait for the election results.