The UK government is expected to announce a ban on trade in goods and some services from Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, with foreign secretary Ed Miliband set to make the statement in the Commons on Tuesday. The move forms part of a wider reset of Britain's relations with Israel and is a direct response to Israeli tenders for 1,200 homes under the E1 settlement project, which Miliband called an "unacceptable and destructive act". It is expected to draw sharp criticism from both Israel and the United States, straining relations at a sensitive diplomatic moment.

Israel's foreign minister Gideon Saar has warned of retaliation, saying "if Britain acts against Israel, Israel will act against Britain", while the Trump administration is reportedly preparing a statement condemning the ban; Prime Minister Andy Burnham discussed the plans with Donald Trump by phone on Monday. The announcement follows separate criticism from the US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, who accused the UK government of "Jew hate" after Miliband said medicines bound for Gaza were being blocked. Miliband has cited rising settler violence and land seizures in the West Bank since the October 7 attacks as threatening the two-state solution, and a YouGov poll found 50 per cent of Britons support a trade ban on illegal settlements, against 16 per cent opposed.