Britain Tries to Force Jews Out of Judea

Britain announced sanctions on Israel yesterday designed to punish Jewish settlers in Judea and Samaria. “Today I announce that the official view of the British government is that the occupation [of Judea and Samaria] is unlawful,” Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said.

• The sanctions ban all imports from settlements in the area commonly referred to as the West Bank, a term designed to downplay its historic connection to the Jews.
• The British government will sanction companies that build or finance building in settlements.
• It will also extend the two-year partial arms freeze on Israel.

Built on lies: Melanie Phillips wrote that “the real issue is that the whole thing is based on ignorant and malevolent lies and distortions, behavior directed at no other country, people or cause on Earth.” She also wrote:

The lies and distortions that have been pouring out of Miliband like an unstoppable geyser of poison are jaw-dropping.

The media and government focus relentlessly on a minority of violent acts committed by some Jews—whom the Israeli authorities try to stop—and they ignore the much bigger problem of Palestinian attacks on Jews.

Miliband gave an example of what he called “settler terrorism” in the village of al-Mughayyir, north of Jerusalem, characterizing it this way:

Settlers have encircled the village and mounted a campaign of intimidation, largely under the protection of the Israeli military …. In the same community, just last week, two teenagers were shot when settlers entered the village under police and military escort.

The truth: Miliband’s example is indeed a good one, because it exposes his and the British government’s typical bias and, in fact, dishonesty, on this subject.

• Inhabitants of al-Mughayyir stole animals belonging to Israeli civilians. While police went in to recover the animals, a Palestinian mob began attacking them, throwing concrete blocks. Police eventually responded with live fire, killing two of the instigators.

The Israeli settlers are trying to defend territory promised to them by God, places where their ancestors have lived for centuries. As Phillips wrote:

It’s the British government that’s actually demanding the ethnic cleansing of Jews from their land and punishing Israel for not bowing to this demand. …

Britain is Israel’s ally no longer. It has become an enemy of the Jewish people, a threat to the West and a menace to civilization.

Sadly, she’s right. This division is a curse that will weaken both nations. Read more about the ancient origins of the British-Israeli relationship and what the Bible prophesies about its fate in “Israel: A Brother Betrayed.”