Ed Miliband said he does not agree with chief rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis, who branded the government’s imposition of sanctions on Israeli settlements a ‘dark day for British Jews’
Ed Miliband has rejected criticism from Britain’s chief rabbi after the government announced sanctions on illegal Israeli settlements.
The UK was among 12 countries backing the move, which has sparked fury in Israel. Mr Miliband said announcing the measures in response to settler violence in the West Bank was “the right thing to do”.
And he said he disagrees with chief rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis, who branded it a “truly dark day for British Jews” and said the measure would embolden those who stir up hatred.
In a dramatic hardening of the UK’s stance toward Israel, Mr Miliband yesterday accused the Israeli government of turning a blind eye to “ethnic cleansing of Palestinians” in the West Bank. Mr Miliband said imports of produce from Israeli settlements would be banned, which includes products like dates, mangoes, avocados, grapes and herbs, as well as olive oil and kosher wine.
The Foreign Secretary told Sky News: “I’m a proud British Jew and I don’t agree with the chief rabbi. I have great respect for the chief rabbi, but I don’t agree with him.
“And I believe that it must be possible to do what we did yesterday, which is to stand up for British values of the rule of law, of dignity for people, of the prevention of injustice, and do so in a way, as I did yesterday, to say to anyone in our country who holds British Jews responsible for the actions of the Israeli government: that is anti-Semitism, pure and simple.
“And we all need to do more to tackle antisemitism. But I believe we can do that and stand up for British values.”
He also said he regrets Israel’s furious response to the sanctions, which saw it close the British consulate in East Jerusalem. Mr Miliband said: “I regret what the Israeli government has announced, but I’m proud of what we did yesterday and it was the right thing to do.”
He said: “It will be damaging, that’s true, but we weighed up the costs and the benefits in advance of this. And we did something very important. We talked to the representatives of the Palestinian people, the Palestinian prime minister, the representative here, and they both said to us with a very clear voice, you need to act from our point of view.”
He added: “I would prefer that Israel hadn’t announced what it did, but overall, I strongly believe that what we did, along with other international allies, was absolutely the right thing to do.”
Following the government’s announcement of sanctions on Monday, Sir Ephraim Mirvis said: “The measures announced amount to little more than political flag bearing for mendacious anti-Israel rhetoric and those who harbour a dangerous obsession with the Jewish State.
“These measures will succeed only in bolstering the very extremism they seek to target.”
The measure had been expected to spark fury from Donald Trump – but the unpredictable US President has yet to respond. Mr Miliband said: “I’ll let our American friends speak for themselves.
“We obviously talked to them in advance of our announcement. You know, I think the whole international community has been quite frustrated, to put it mildly, with some of the actions of the Israeli government.
“I will let them say what what they feel, but I think there is real concern about what is happening. And it’s this point that underlying so many of the conflicts in the Middle East, is this failure to really grasp the situation between Israel and Palestine, and this is why it’s in our interest to act.”
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the sanctions are “the right thing to do”. He said they are aimed “not at the Israeli people”, but at bringing peace in the region.
He stated: “The Israeli people are not responsible for the actions of their government. And nor is the Jewish community in the UK. Blaming British Jews for the actions of Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is wrong, plain and simple. And it is antisemitism, plain and simple.
“I met the representatives of the Jewish community just last week. I know the fear they live with day by day. My Government will stop at nothing to ensure they are safe and to stamp out antisemitism in every part of our society.”
Israeli foreign minister Gideon Saar announced that the UK’s consulate in Jerusalem would be closed as part of a package of retaliatory measures. He also said Israel would ban 11 MPs and a campaigner involved in what he claimed was “antisemitic and anti-Israel activity” from entry to the country.
They include former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and veteran Labour MP Diane Abbott, as well as all five Green Party MPs. Mr Saar said he had spoken to Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch on Tuesday night and thanked her for her opposition to the “hostile Labour Government’s announcement”.