UK legal experts call for broader sanctions over Israeli occupation

More than 130 UK legal experts have urged Prime Minister Andy Burnham to expand sanctions on Israel, arguing that current measures do not meet obligations they associate with the International Court of Justice’s 2024 advisory opinion on the occupation.

The letter’s signatories, including 18 king’s counsel, said the UK’s import ban on goods from Israeli settlements and related measures were a necessary step but “fall far short” of the action required. They said the sanctions were narrower than those imposed on Russia and focused on settlements rather than the occupation itself.

The experts called for measures covering insurance, accountancy services and digital infrastructure. They also urged the Government to confirm whether UK public bodies, pension schemes or sovereign funds hold investments connected to settlements.

The letter called for a full arms embargo, citing Article 6(3) of the Arms Trade Treaty. The signatories linked their demand to Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband’s allegation of ethnic cleansing in the West Bank, while the source material does not independently establish that claim.

The ICJ’s 2024 advisory opinion said Israel should end the occupation as rapidly as possible and that other states should not recognise it as lawful or assist it. The UK measures followed reported settler attacks on Palestinian villages and an Israeli tender for 1,200 homes in the E1 settlement area.

Ralph Wilde, a University College London professor of international law and letter signatory, described the UK’s recognition of the occupation as unlawful as significant but said its response remained focused on settlements and settlers. The Government called its approach the biggest reset in a generation and said it was acting to uphold international law and protect the two-state solution. Israeli foreign minister Gideon Sa’ar condemned the position.