UK Sanctions 2 Israeli Ministers
.. Australia,Canada, New Zealand, Norway to Follow Suit
The United Kingdom (UK) today announced a person- specific regime of sanctions on two core ministers of the state of Israel.
It involves assets freeze and travel ban for the Minister for Finance and National Security.
The announcement by the Foreign Office in London is the first major indication that the UK, which recently signed a threat statement against Israel, meant to give flesh to its threat.
The UK, Canada and France , three major planks in the Western support for Israel in its policies in Gaza, had jointly signed a statement threatening unspecified sanctions against the Jewish state if it continued to block aid flow into Gaza and continued its much criticised war on the enclave and the occupied West Bank.
Israel has yet to meet any of their core demands.
Since the statement was issued, both Britain and France, who hold the prestigious Veto privilege in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) have voted against Israel in a poll calling for the unconditional end to Israel’s war in Palestine.
America, the only member of the 15- member UNSC, and holder of the veto, voted against it, thus knocking out the vote and its essence.
The American action, which critics say strengthened Israel, as well as Israel ‘s sustenance of its controversial policies, has drawn the flak of the rest of the council, and now, Britain, which is co- terminus in International diplomacy as the UK, has acted in an apparent response to the Israeli intransigence, especially its approval for the building of 22 new settlements on occupied Palestinian land.
Such settlements are illegal under international law and the rest of the global community has been urging Israel to discontinue the policy and dismantle existing ones.
But Israel has opted to move in the opposite direction, preferring to build more of such settlements, reportedly at the prodding of the National Security Adviser, Itamir Ben Gvir, and his Finance counterpart, Bezalel Smotrich who have now been sanctioned.
Both Ministers, in separate reactions, have roundly carpeted the UK, asserting that they would never slack in their protection of Israel and their sabotage of all efforts to create a viable independent Palestinian State.
The sanction of the two far right ministers is the second such action by the UK against Israel in the last two months.
In the first move, it suspended trade talks with the Jewish nation.
Diplomats say that Britain, which has been a major supplier of military assets and actionable intelligence to Israel , is strongly considering the recognition of a Palestinian State.
A global meeting of the United Nations UN is due later this nonth in New York, America, on the vexatious Palestinian issue.
But ahead of that move, America, via a media leak in Tel Aviv, Israel, has said it “no longer wholeheartedly supports” the creation of an independent state of Palestine.
