UK sanctions settler networks and expands Gaza aid

In the Foreign Secretary’s statement to MPs on 9 June, the UK presented the weekend as a turning point in an already dangerous crisis. The government said Hezbollah had continued firing into northern Israel, Israel had struck southern Beirut, and Iran and Israel had exchanged missiles directly. That is a serious jump in risk, especially because it came after a ceasefire that was already described as fragile. **What this means:** ministers are not treating these as isolated incidents. The argument in the Commons was that the region could slide from several connected flashpoints into something much wider, with more civilian deaths, deeper displacement and knock-on effects for trade and prices well beyond the Middle East. That is why the Foreign Secretary said he had spoken directly to Iran’s foreign minister to press for urgent de-escalation.

The government welcomed indications that Israel and Iran had ended their strikes, but it also warned that reports of fresh attacks that morning showed just how easily violence could restart. In the statement, the UK said there must be a diplomatic route not only to calm the Israel-Iran confrontation, but also to end the conflict in Lebanon, reopen the Strait of Hormuz, restore wider stability and prevent Iran from ever developing or obtaining a nuclear weapon. The tone on Lebanon was deliberately two-sided. The Foreign Secretary condemned Hezbollah’s attacks on Israel and repeated that Hezbollah is a proscribed organisation acting with Iran’s backing. At the same time, he said Israel’s recent escalation in Lebanon had been reckless and disproportionate, worsening a humanitarian crisis that has already displaced more than a million Lebanese people and killed thousands.

One reason the Strait of Hormuz featured so heavily is simple: it matters far beyond the Gulf. It is a major route for global shipping, so disruption there can feed into fuel costs, supply chains and the wider cost of living. The statement said the UK wants the waterway fully reopened without tolls or charges as part of the ongoing US-Iran talks, and that the Foreign Secretary had discussed this goal with counterparts in China and India. He also said Britain, working with France and other countries, stands ready to help with demining and to support a multilateral maritime mission once an agreement is in place. **What this means:** the UK is trying to show that diplomacy has to come with practical follow-up. Calling for calm is one thing; making trade routes safe again is another.

The statement then turned to Palestine, and here the mood grew heavier. The Foreign Secretary reminded MPs that nine months ago the UK recognised the State of Palestine at the UN General Assembly alongside partners, presenting that move as a defence of the two-state solution. In plain English, that means keeping alive the idea that Israelis and Palestinians should each have secure, recognised political futures rather than living under endless war and occupation. But the government’s own verdict now is bleak. According to the statement, the ceasefire in Gaza still exists formally but is being violated regularly. Since October, more than 900 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed, 1.9 million remain displaced, and 90% of water and sanitation infrastructure has been destroyed and not rebuilt. Aid deliveries are still running at barely half the 4,200 trucks a week promised under what ministers call the 20 Point Plan.

That is why the statement used unusually sharp language on humanitarian access. The government said Israel’s registration law is still severely restricting international NGOs, key crossings remain closed, and it is morally indefensible that children are still going hungry while food they need sits out of reach. It also said some UK aid remains stuck in warehouses in Jordan and Egypt because agencies still cannot get enough support through. The UK used this section to show what its own money has been doing on the ground. According to the statement, Britain provided more than £80 million in humanitarian and early recovery funding last year, helping 650,000 people receive food and improving water, sanitation and hygiene access for 300,000 people. Ministers also announced a further £1 million for mine clearance after earlier UK support helped make 45 acres safe and clear 24 important sites, including medical facilities.

The government did not place every failure on one side. It said Hamas has not begun decommissioning and still keeps a tight hold over parts of Gaza. It also said Gazans are restricted to just 40% of the territory, while the phased withdrawal of Israeli troops promised under the ceasefire framework has not been carried through. Put together, the statement suggests a ceasefire can exist on paper while daily life remains trapped by force, fear and blocked movement. So the UK set out three pressure points. Aid, ministers said, must increase and must not be made conditional on other parts of the peace plan. Hamas must start dismantling its weapons and military infrastructure, with the UK offering technical expertise to help that process. And the transitional Palestinian National Committee needs the access and practical backing it was promised, because, as the Foreign Secretary put it, Palestine should be run by Palestinians.

The West Bank formed the most politically pointed part of the speech. The Foreign Secretary argued that no serious peace effort can survive if Palestinian statehood and rights are allowed to wither there, and he pointed to recent killings to show why. He backed calls for an immediate and transparent investigation after seven-month-old Sam Abu Haikal was killed in South Hebron when the IDF opened fire on a family car. He also condemned a separate weekend shooting in Israel in which one person was killed and five were injured, noting that Hamas applauded that attack. The statement then focused on settler violence, which it described as rising and deeply disturbing. Ministers cited 950 violent incidents this year, including an April attack on a school in which settlers killed two Palestinians, one of them a 14-year-old boy. The political message was clear: while some figures in the Netanyahu government have condemned parts of this violence, the UK says there has been too little accountability and that hardline settler politics is now tangled up with the approach of the Israeli cabinet.

That is why the government announced a new package of sanctions aimed not only at individual settlers but at the networks behind them. In the Commons statement, ministers named the Farms Association, Ahavat Gilad and Artzenu as organisations linked to fundraising, financial support or equipment for illegal outposts and armed settler groups. This is, the government said, the fourth sanctions package under the Labour government against extremist Israeli settlers and those who enable or incite their violence. It did not stop there. The Prime Minister had already joined other leaders in warning businesses not to bid for construction tenders in E1 or other settlement developments. Now the Department for Business and Trade has strengthened its guidance to say British citizens and firms should not carry out economic or financial activity in illegal Israeli settlements. Ministers have also asked the Charity Commission for England and Wales to investigate evidence of UK charities with links to illegal settlements. **What this means:** the UK is trying to raise the legal, financial and reputational cost of settlement expansion while keeping a clear distinction between illegal settlements and normal trade with Israel itself.

The final part of the statement dealt with Palestinian governance, which can sound dry until you see what is at stake. The UK said it is still pressing the Palestinian Authority to reform education, welfare payments and elections, with practical support drawing on the work of the UK envoy Lord Michael Barber. But ministers also argued that reform cannot work if the Palestinian Authority is starved of money and room to govern. According to the statement, Israel is withholding $5 billion in Palestinian tax revenue, leaving schools and health facilities struggling to open for more than one or two days a week. Britain says its support this year has helped 5,300 health workers keep frontline services running, and it announced at least £10 million more in 2026 to help pay salaries across hospitals, clinics and maternity services. The Foreign Secretary is also travelling to Paris ahead of a peace-building conference bringing together civil society groups and international partners. If you want the shortest reading of the whole speech, it is this: the UK is trying to pair sanctions, aid and diplomatic pressure in the hope of keeping alive a two-state future that ministers believe is still possible, but in grave danger.