Closure of British Consulate in East Jerusalem... After Israeli Deadline Expires

In a move that comes against the backdrop of a continuous deterioration in relations between London and Tel Aviv, Israel announced that the British Consulate in East Jerusalem has suspended its operations, noting that seven British diplomats are allowed to remain, while the United Kingdom confirmed it will continue to provide “vital services.”

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said in a statement that “the British Consulate in Jerusalem has suspended its operations. The Consul General and twenty diplomats... have concluded their missions and will leave Israel.”

He noted that a “team of seven diplomats... will remain, with their scope of activity being extremely limited,” a month after Israel announced the closure of the British Consulate in response to sanctions imposed by London on Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

According to the minister, his country and Britain “agreed to continue dialogue between the two governments, so that both sides can raise issues important to them.”

For its part, the British government pledged to continue providing “vital services” in Jerusalem and announced that the Consulate General building in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of occupied East Jerusalem will remain open and will be known as the “British Mission in Jerusalem.”

British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said in a statement that “the British Mission in Jerusalem is independent and fully operational, and will continue to provide vital services and our work with the Palestinian people.”

On Wednesday night, workers at the British Consulate in occupied East Jerusalem removed signs and plaques from the consulate building, as the deadline set by Israel for its closure expired.

Last September, Israel ordered Britain to close the consulate within 30 days and remove its diplomats from Jerusalem, in response to London’s announcement of imposing sanctions targeting Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, including a trade ban on goods produced there.

The United Nations and most countries in the world consider Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories illegal under international law, a position Israel rejects.

Despite Britain’s efforts to keep the consulate open, including sending the British National Security Advisor to Israel last week for talks, the Israeli government stuck to its decision to close it.