The United Kingdom on Tuesday announced it would pause free trade talks with Israel after Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he was horrified by the military escalation in Gaza. The UK also announced further sanctions and said it will summon the country's ambassador.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy announces that the Israeli ambassador has been summoned by the UK government, and negotiations over a free trade deal have been "suspended".Latest: https://t.co/qikdGClv4f Sky 501, Virgin 602, Freeview 233 and YouTube pic.twitter.com/whLqbShYDb
— Sky News (@SkyNews) May 20, 2025
"While the UK government remains committed to the existing trade agreement in force, it is not possible to advance discussions on a new, upgraded Free Trade Agreement with a Netanyahu government that is pursuing egregious policies in the West Bank and Gaza," the government said in a statement.
Additionally, the UK will place sanctions on a number of individuals and groups in the West Bank, who it said have "supported, incited and promoted violence against Palestinian communities in the West Bank."
Three individuals, two illegal settler outposts, and two organisations were targeted by the new sanctions, including Daniella Weiss, the former mayor of the Kedumim settlement, and her Nachala Israel Movement, a settler group promoting new Jewish outposts in the West Bank and the resettlement of Gaza, and of which Weiss is a founder.
Weiss was the subject of a recent documentary, 'The Settlers,' from British documentary maker Louis Theroux.
Other individuals and entities sanctioned are Harel Libi and his company, Libi Construction and Infrastructure, Zohar Sabah, Coco's Farm, and Neria's Farm.
Under the sanctions, those listed will be subject to financial restrictions, travel bans, and director disqualifications.
Settler violence has witnessed a dramatic surge, the UK government says, citing UN data that recorded over 1800 attacks by settlers against Palestinian communities since January 2024.
"I have seen for myself the consequences of settler violence. The fear of its victims. The impunity of its perpetrators," UK Foreign Minister David Lammy said in a statement.
"The sanctioning of Daniella Weiss and others today demonstrates our determination to hold extremist settlers to account as Palestinian communities suffer violence and intimidation at the hands of extremist settlers. The Israeli government has a responsibility to intervene and halt these aggressive actions. Their consistent failure to act is putting Palestinian communities and the two-state solution in peril."
The Israel Foreign Ministry responded to the negotiation suspension, saying, "Even before today's announcement, the issue was not advanced at all by the current British government. Beyond that, the agreement is for the mutual benefit of both countries. If, due to anti-Israel obsession and internal political considerations, the British government is willing to harm the British economy, that is its decision."
"The sanctions against the settlers in Judea and Samaria are puzzling, unjustified and especially regrettable when they are taken that Israel is mourning another victim of Palestinian terrorism - the late Tzeela Gaz, who was murdered on her way to the delivery room, and the doctors are still fighting for the life of her baby in the hospital. The British Mandate ended exactly 77 years ago. External pressures will not divert Israel from its path in its struggle for its existence and security against enemies working to destroy it," the statement continued.
IDF increases Gaza offensive
The Israeli military announced the start of a new operation in Gaza last week, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel would take control of the whole of the enclave.
On Sunday, the IDF said that it has already increased the pace of the invasion, including killing dozens of Hamas terrorists and striking 670 Hamas targets.
Over the weekend, Israeli forces invaded and began to take control over large portions of northern and southern Gaza, which they had not entered in such large numbers of forces since 2024.
IDF attacks focused on Hamas forces, their weapons, tunnels, and anti-tank missile crews.