Andy Burnham is bracing for a diplomatic headache after signalling plans to sanction Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank a decision that's rattled allies in both Washington and Jerusalem before it's even been formally unveiled.
The announcement is expected to land on Tuesday, when Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband stands up in the Commons to detail what's being billed as a "reset" of UK-Israel relations. It's the clearest sign yet that Burnham intends to steer his government toward a tougher posture on the issue than his predecessors.
Timing-wise, the move comes hot on the heels of a phone call between Burnham and Donald Trump on Monday, during which the two discussed the Middle East. Given the US president's closeness to Israel, the sanctions plan was always likely to ruffle feathers in Washington and it didn't take long for that to happen.
Washington and Israel Push Back Hard
Mike Huckabee, the US Ambassador to Israel, didn't mince words when he described the plan as an "irrational action" during an interview with the BBC's Today programme. He went so far as to frame it as discriminatory not just against the Israeli government, he said, but against Jewish people more broadly.
"I don't know if they have thought it through," Huckabee said, comparing the decision to throwing a stone without knowing where it will land. He was careful to acknowledge Britain's right to chart its own course as a sovereign nation, but added pointedly that the same principle applies to the US.
Israel's response was even blunter. Foreign Minister Gideon Saar issued a direct warning: if Britain takes action against Israel, Israel will respond in kind against Britain.
Domestic Reaction Is Split
Not everyone in Westminster is convinced the sanctions will actually bite. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp dismissed the plan as little more than "performative posturing," arguing it would be nearly impossible to enforce given the practical challenge of telling goods made in West Bank settlements apart from those produced elsewhere in Israel.
Cabinet minister Pat McFadden pushed back on that characterisation, insisting the coming restrictions will be narrowly and specifically targeted rather than sweeping.
A Shift Years in the Making
This isn't coming out of nowhere. Labour's handling of Israel's military campaign in Gaza launched after Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack cost the party support among many of its left-leaning voters during Keir Starmer's tenure as leader. Burnham himself was among the senior Labour figures who called for a ceasefire as early as October that year, and he'd already hinted he planned to recalibrate the government's approach not long after taking the top job in July.
One flashpoint in particular has drawn his attention: the E1 settlement project, which has now received final approval from Israel. Critics say the development would effectively sever the West Bank from East Jerusalem, dealing a significant blow to hopes for a viable two-state solution.
Concerns Closer to Home
The debate isn't confined to foreign policy circles. There are growing worries about how the sanctions could reverberate within Britain's own Jewish community, as well as what they might mean for security cooperation with Israel going forward.
Labour MP Peter Prinsley, vice chair of Labour Friends of Israel, said he'd personally raised these concerns with Miliband. Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, he warned that critics of Israel often fail to distinguish between the Israeli government's policies, Zionism as a political philosophy, and British Jews as a community.
"As far as they're concerned, the whole thing's the same," Prinsley said, adding that he fears this blurring of lines could heighten the risk of attacks on Jewish communities in the UK.
With the formal announcement just days away, all eyes will be on how far Miliband goes and how Washington and Tel Aviv choose to respond.
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