The scope of the United Kingdom’s newly announced sanctions targeting Israeli settlements in the West Bank could expand or narrow based on the actions of Israel’s next government, a British official told reporters Wednesday, without suggesting the measures could be abandoned altogether.

“The government has flexibility in how it implements these measures,” the official said on condition of anonymity, pointing to remarks by British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband that London “will judge a new Israeli government by its actions,” and saying technical details will be discussed by ministers over the next six to nine months before their expected implementation.

While London has set no specific conditions for reconsidering the measures, it broadly wants Israel to curb settlement expansion and settler violence, advance a political resolution with the Palestinians, and stop efforts to weaken or collapse the Palestinian Authority, the official said.

Israel is set to vote for a new Knesset on October 27, and recent polling suggests a deadlock between the right-wing bloc led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and an opposition bloc made up of several anti-Netanyahu parties, many of whom have vowed to crack down on settler violence in the West Bank. However, most surveys show that neither bloc is likely to reach the 61 seats in the Knesset needed to form a majority government.

The British official also said Israel had previously assured the UK, France and Germany that it would take no new steps on its E1 settlement project before the upcoming Israeli election, yet subsequently issued a housing tender set to close a week before the vote. He said this was one catalyst for Tuesday’s sanctions announcement.

While denouncing the sanctions and laying out Israeli countermeasures Tuesday, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar argued that E1’s advancement was “not a new decision,” as its formal approval was finalized in 2025 and the tender process had been underway for months.

The British official also criticized Israel’s countermeasure of removing British officials from the International Gaza Support Center in Kiryat Gat, saying that “all that the Israeli government has done in expelling our staff… is undermine efforts to implement [US President Donald Trump’s] 20-point plan [for Gaza.] That’s not a constructive response.”

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© The Times of Israel