Ed Miliband Accuses Israeli Settlers Of ‘Ethnic Cleansing’

Ed Miliband has accused the Israeli settlers in the West Bank of “ethnic cleansing” as he unveiled a fresh set of sanctions.

The foreign secretary has announced his plan to ban trade from Israeli settlements in the illegally occupied Palestinian territory as part of his attempt to “reset” relations with Israel.

He said the UK will “take action” against those who provide services including construction, finance and real-estate for settlement expansion.

He said he hoped to roll out the legislation in six to nine months.

It comes after Israel unveiled plans to extend developments in the West Bank, which would disrupt the idea of a Palestinian state.

Tensions in the West Bank have spiked in recent months as violent disputes have erupted between Israeli settlers and Palestinians.

Israel has built about 160 settlements housing 700,00 Jews since it first occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem during the 1967 war.

Approximately 3.3 million Palestinians are estimated to live among them.

While making a statement to MPs in the Commons, Miliband noted that the government’s argument is “not with the people of Israel, with whom the UK has unshakeable bonds” but “with the conduct of its government.”

He said the Israeli settlements in the West Bank – illegal under international law – have expanded more rapidly under the last four years of this Israeli government than in the previous 20 years.

The cabinet minister continued: “Ethnic cleansing is defined by the UN as ‘a purposeful policy designed by one ethnic or religious group to remove by violent and terror-inspiring means the civilian population of another ethnic or religious group from certain geographic areas’.

“The British government agrees that there is ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in areas of the West Bank – perpetrated by settler terrorists.

“And all too often, the Israeli government has turned a blind eye to this and worse, members of it have made statements and taken actions to support the forced displacement of Palestinians.”

France, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Sweden have all joined the UK is slapping sanctions on Israeli settlers today.

In a joint statement, the countries confirmed this action follows steps already taken by Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands, Norway and Belgium.

Miliband also turned his attention to Gaza, where he said Britain supports the legal processes to determine if Israel has committed genocide.

He added that the UK will do “everything we can to provide all the humanitarian support possible to help the people of Gaza”.

“Our extension of the global human rights sanctions regime will enable us to target those responsible for violations of international humanitarian law, whether in Gaza or anywhere else in the world,” the foreign secretary said.

Miliband’s announcement has already put a strain on Britain’s relations with the US and with Israel.

The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, accused the government of “discrimination against Jews”.

US president Donald Trump is yet to publicly respond to the sanctions package.

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