Netanyahu accuses Britain of undermining Israel despite intelligence cooperation
Benjamin Netanyahu accused the British Government of acting “like a rogue state” over its policies towards Israel, saying it was appeasing Islamist groups while criticising a country that helps protect Britain. His remarks came in an interview in Jerusalem and reflect a sharp deterioration in relations over Britain’s treatment of Israeli settlements, arms licences and Palestinian statehood.
Netanyahu said Israeli intelligence had helped stop an alleged Iran-sponsored attack on RAF Fairford, and claimed it might otherwise have cost British lives; the article provides no independent confirmation of his account. He criticised the timing of the intelligence tip-off alongside Britain’s recent ban on trade with Israeli settlements in the West Bank, its withholding of some arms licences and its recognition of a Palestinian state before all hostages from the 7 October attacks had been freed. He said Israel still considered London an ally and confirmed he had not spoken to Andy Burnham since Burnham took office in July.
- Netanyahu called the British Government a “rogue state”.
- He said Israeli intelligence helped stop an alleged attack on RAF Fairford.
- The dispute centres on Britain’s policies towards Israel and Palestine.
New here? Start with this
Britain and Israel have maintained a long-standing strategic partnership, but relations have become strained in recent months. This follows British policies restricting trade with Israeli settlements in the West Bank, reducing military exports to Israel, and officially recognising a Palestinian state.
Benjamin Netanyahu is Israel's Prime Minister, and Israel's government opposes these policies, viewing them as a departure from previous British support and as damaging to Israeli security.
These tensions are significant because Britain and Israel have historically maintained close diplomatic and intelligence partnerships. The disagreement reflects wider international divisions about how to respond to Israeli settlements and Palestinian statehood.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Israel provides crucial intelligence that directly protects British security, as demonstrated by the alleged prevention of an attack on RAF Fairford, yet Britain responds by imposing settlement trade restrictions and withholding arms whilst recognising Palestinian statehood. This pattern appears to treat Israel inconsistently compared to other allies and risks undermining a security partnership that serves mutual interests. When allies provide tangible life-saving intelligence cooperation, reciprocal respect in diplomatic relations becomes both fair and strategically prudent.
The case against
Principled foreign policy grounded in international law and human rights cannot be made conditional on intelligence arrangements or diplomatic convenience, however valuable those arrangements may be. Britain's positions on settlement policy, arms licensing and Palestinian recognition reflect established legal and moral principles that apply consistently regardless of which nation is involved. Genuine partnership between democracies includes the capacity to maintain security cooperation whilst disagreeing openly on specific policies; subordinating principle to strategic convenience would undermine rather than strengthen the relationship.
Read the full article at the source →
Originally published by Daily Mail as “Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to NATALIE LISBONA in an exclusive interview: ‘I don’t know how many lives we’ve saved by giving Britain information about impending attacks. But under Burnham they’re a rogue state’”.