Britain is likely to expel Israeli diplomats if Israel carries out its decision to close the British consulate in East Jerusalem on Thursday, four sources said, in a potential escalation of tensions between the two countries over British sanctions targeting Israeli settlements, Reuters reported.
اضافة اعلان
Israel's deadline for Britain to close the consulate and withdraw its diplomats from East Jerusalem expires on Thursday. The move would affect around 30 British diplomats working at the mission, along with their family members.
Israel's Foreign Ministry confirmed that the consulate would be closed on Thursday and said Israel would respond to any measures targeting it.
In an effort to prevent the closure, British National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell visited Israel last week in an unannounced trip and held talks with Israeli officials on keeping the consulate open, according to three sources.
The talks failed to produce an agreement, although two sources said a settlement remained possible, albeit unlikely before Thursday's deadline.
According to The Guardian, Powell sought to persuade the Israeli government to cancel or postpone the closure, but the talks were unsuccessful.
Meanwhile, The Jerusalem Post reported, citing two informed sources, that senior British officials had told Israel that London would respond by expelling 27 Israeli diplomats, along with their families, if the consulate were closed and British diplomats forced to leave.
The Guardian said the threat was based on expelling one Israeli diplomat for every British diplomat forced to leave, potentially resulting in the expulsion of up to 27 Israeli diplomats.
The British government has not officially announced any decision to expel Israeli diplomats. An Israeli diplomatic source told The Guardian that Israel had previously demonstrated that any action against it would be met with what the source described as an appropriate response.
Background to the Dispute
The dispute began on September 8, when Britain announced plans to ban goods produced in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
London said the measures were prompted by what it described as Israeli actions undermining prospects for a two-state solution, as well as plans to expand settlements and an increase in settler attacks against Palestinians.
Israel responded the same day by ordering Britain to close its consulate in East Jerusalem within 30 days and withdraw its diplomats from the city.
The consulate is located in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood and handles Britain's relations with Palestinians in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, as well as providing consular services to them.
The consulate differs from the British Embassy in Tel Aviv, as it performs an independent diplomatic role in the Palestinian territories.
France and Canada have also taken similar measures regarding goods originating from Israeli settlements, but Israel has not taken comparable action against them.
Source: Reuters
