On Tuesday, UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband announced measures that appear to aim to comply with a landmark legal opinion issued by the United Nations’ highest court more than two years ago.
In a long-anticipated speech in parliament, Miliband declared the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and announced both comprehensive sanctions on Israeli settlements and a ban on all arms licences and other exports that "materially contribute to the occupation".
Miliband said his government has concluded that there is ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank perpetrated by Israeli settlers, and accused the Israeli government of “turning a blind eye” to the abuses, while condoning the displacement of Palestinians.
"Now, for a long time, the British government has rightly said settlements are illegal. But we have remained silent on the question of the legality of the occupation as a whole, which in 2024 the International Court of Justice concluded was unlawful," he said.
"Today, I announce that the official view of the British government is that the occupation is unlawful.
