A coalition of 102 former French and British diplomats has released an open letter urging the governments of France and the United Kingdom to jointly impose sanctions on Israel. Published by Aljazeera, the letter warns that Israeli policies in occupied Palestinian territories threaten to permanently erase any possibility of establishing an independent Palestinian state.
Former Diplomats Call for Joint Sanctions on Israel
The signatories include 52 French former diplomats and 50 British former ambassadors, with prominent figures such as former British ambassadors to the United Nations Jeremy Greenstock and Emyr Jones Parry, alongside former French Middle East directors Yves Aubin de la Messuziere and Denis Bauchard. The open letter was addressed to French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, with copies sent to British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband.
The diplomats argue that both nations share a responsibility to act, noting that France and the United Kingdom recognized a Palestinian state in 2025. According to Turkiyetoday.com, the open letter asserts that accountability for war crimes and crimes humanity is essential to rebut accusations of double standards.
Accusations of Ethnic Cleansing and Criticisms of Israeli Policy
The open letter dispenses with traditional diplomatic language, sharply criticizing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s assertion that Israel must live by the sword. The former diplomats called the approach morally wrong, counterproductive, and a danger to Israel’s security.
The letter explicitly accuses Israel of ethnic cleansing, pointing to rampant settler violence and Palestinian house demolitions carried out with the connivance of the Israeli army and police in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Furthermore, the signatories stated that the world no longer views Israel as a genuine democracy, asserting that depriving others of their rights and land is incompatible with democratic values.
The text also contends that Israeli policies have shown contempt for international law, rulings by the International Court of Justice, and numerous UN Security Council resolutions, while extending destructive patterns into Lebanon and Syria.
Proposed Measures and Actionable Demands
Rejecting mere statements of condemnation, the former diplomats demand concrete actions from Paris and London. Their proposed measures include:
- Suspending EU-Israel and UK-Israel trade agreements.
- Halting arms transfers and military cooperation with Israel.
- Implementing a ban on trade with Israeli settlements, covering goods, investment, insurance, and financial services.
- Warning potential bidders involved in financing or building the E1 settlement project east of Jerusalem that they could face consequences for business interests in France and the UK.
- Criminalizing the purchase of property on occupied Palestinian land by French and British citizens.
- Stripping charitable status from organizations that fund settlement activity.
- Guaranteeing humanitarian access to Gaza through UNRWA and other UN agencies, alongside protected access for journalists, diplomats, and parliamentarians.
Broader Geopolitical Context
The open letter was released just two days after France, the UK, and nine other nations issued a joint condemnation of the Israeli government’s publication of construction tenders for the E1 settlement project. The diplomats emphasized that their call to action addresses the immediate risk posed by renewed West Bank settlement expansion, which they argue would realistically prevent the creation of a future Palestinian state.
Internal debates among diplomats have also focused on whether Israeli leadership is provoking international reprisals ahead of upcoming elections scheduled for October 27. Meanwhile, international friction persists over separate diplomatic efforts, including a US-led peace plan for Gaza that has drawn criticism from several Muslim nations for failing to overcome central obstacles.
