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Israel has informed the British consulate in East Jerusalem that it must close and \u200cthat diplomats assigned \u200cthere will \u200close their accreditation within 30 days, an Israeli official and a source familiar with \u200cthe \u200cmatter said.<\/p>\n
British representatives \u200cassigned to \u200ca US-led Gaza coordination mission in Israel, as \u200cwell as British diplomats based in Ramallah, must leave within seven days, the source familiar with the matter said.<\/p>\n
Israel on Tuesday ordered the closure of Britain\u2019s consulate in Jerusalem as retaliation after London led Western sanctions over violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.<\/p>\n
Britain on Tuesday announced a trade ban on goods made in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank in coordination with France and Canada, the latest sanctions to target Israel as it faces growing diplomatic isolation.<\/p>\n
British Foreign Minister Ed Miliband said Britain could no longer simply \u201ccall out\u201d injustice and suffering, but told the House of Commons that the country now had to \u201cact\u201d to oppose the expansion of settlements.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday we refuse to be bystanders to further suffering and to the destruction of the two-state solution,\u201d Miliband said, referring to Britain\u2019s long-held support for the two-state idea, which Israel opposes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n