UK ‘threatens to expel 27 Israeli diplomats’ over Jerusalem consulate | Information

Israel ordered East Jerusalem consulate to be closed in retaliation for British sanctioning of settlements within the occupied West Bank.

The United Kingdom has threatened to expel 27 Israeli diplomats ought to Israel proceed with plans to shut the British consulate in occupied East Jerusalem, in keeping with unverified Israeli media studies.

The Ynet outlet reported on Monday that the British Ambassador to Israel, Simon Walters, had conveyed the warning to Israeli officers. Israel ordered the closure of the consulate by October 8 in retaliation for the British resolution to sanction unlawful settlements within the occupied West Bank.

According to the report, the British authorities has threatened to expel one Israeli diplomat for every of the 27 British diplomats whose diplomatic standing on the consulate can be terminated within the occasion that it’s shut.

Israel ordered the consulate’s closure after Britain imposed sanctions focusing on unlawful Israeli settlements within the West Bank, together with a ban on imports.

The consulate operates individually from the British Embassy in Israel and handles relations with Palestinians in East Jerusalem, the occupied West Bank and Gaza, together with political and consular affairs.

Britain’s National Security Adviser, Jonathan Powell, travelled to Israel final week in an undisclosed try to influence Israeli officers to reverse the closure, the Reuters information company reported on Monday. The talks didn’t produce an settlement, though discussions are persevering with.

The British embassy in Israel has declined to touch upon the reported menace, in keeping with Ynet.