Ed Miliband has demanded that Israel crack down on settler violence and settlement expansion during his first call as foreign secretary with his counterpart in Jerusalem, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar.
During the conversation with Sa’ar on Tuesday, which he described as “frank and constructive”, Miliband said that the government believed in “open and honest dialogue and has a fundamental commitment to a two-state solution, with a safe and secure State of Israel and a Palestinian state”.
This marked the first high-level diplomatic conversation between a British foreign secretary and Sa’ar since March this year, amid strained relations between London and Jerusalem.
According to a readout of the meeting shared by Miliband, he also raised “the sharp escalation of settler violence and settlement expansion, as well as the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza” and demanded Israel “crack down on violence in the West Bank” and “immediately end blockages on aid into Gaza”.
The foreign secretary also emphasised the government’s demand that Hamas decommission its weapons and the need to tackle antisemitism across the world.
However, the readout of the meeting shared by Israel’s foreign minister had a significantly different tone.
In a post on X, Sa’ar said he “emphasised the importance Israel attaches to our relationship with Britain and my hope for a more productive dialogue between our countries” and praised the government’s decision to designate the IRGC as a state threat.
He continued: “I also said that the extremist regime in Iran hasn’t given up achieving nuclear weapons. I urged the UK to further proscribe the Hezbollah’s financial institution, Al-Qard Al-Hassan.
"Cutting off Hezbollah’s financial infrastructure is an important step in preventing it from continuing its campaign of terror against Israel and its ongoing occupation of Lebanon and the Lebanese people”.
Israel’s foreign minister went on to say that he made clear to Miliband that “progress in the implementation of President Trump’s plan for Gaza is dependent on the disarmament of Hamas and other terror groups and the demilitarisation of the Strip”.
Had a conversation with UK Foreign Secretary @Ed_Miliband.
— Gideon Sa'ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) August 11, 2026
I emphasized the importance Israel attaches to our relationship with Britain and my hope for a more productive dialogue between our countries.
I welcomed the British government’s decision to proscribe the IRGC.
I also…
The JC has previously reported on the tensions between London and Jerusalem and the limited number of high-level communications between senior government ministers.
Since coming into office in 2024, a number of key decisions taken by the Labour government have been criticised as contributing to the deterioration in relations between the two countries.
These included the restoration of funding to Palestinian UN agency Unrwa, despite accusations from Israel that Unrwa staff participated in atrocities on October 7, the imposition of sanctions against two far-right Israeli ministers, the partial suspension of arms sales, and the decision to recognise a Palestinian state while Hamas still held Israeli hostages.
Successive British foreign secretaries have also criticised Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza and demanded an increase in aid flowing into the strip.
They have also criticised increased settlement construction and settler violence in the West Bank. Miliband’s predecessor Yvette Cooper confirmed that the government was considering linking measures targeting Israeli settlements to increased settlement expansion, in particular around the E1 block.
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