The suspension of trade talks between UK & ISRAEL

Britain sent an unmistakable message to Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, on Friday – continue what you are doing in Gaza and risk becoming a pariah amongst the few Western friends you have left.

The suspension of trade talks, the summoning of the Israeli ambassador, the threat of “further action”, the language of unvarnished condemnation – taken together, these are unprecedented moments in the recent history of Anglo-Israeli relations.

There have been moments of tension before, primarily over Jewish settlement building in the West Bank.

In 2010, Britain even went as far as to expel an Israeli intelligence officer after Mossad spies used fraudulently obtained British passports in a mission to kill Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, a senior Hamas commander, in his Dubai hotel room.

In retrospect, though, such moments of drama proved to be passing spats. Even if relations are not yet at breaking point, this feels different.

It is hard to recall the last time a Cabinet minister used such robust language towards Israel in the House of Commons.

Sir Keir Starmer said he was “horrified” by Israel’s latest escalation in Gaza, the whole of which Mr Netanyahu has threatened to take over following the launch of a major operation in the territory last week.

According to doctors from Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, 500 people have been killed in the past eight days.

Sir Keir also expressed his fury over the limited aid Israel has allowed into Gaza, describing it as “totally and utterly inadequate”. Israel allowed five aid lorries to enter the strip on Monday for the first time since early March, and has given the United Nations permission to send 100 more.

But the UN, which warns that Gaza stands on the brink of famine and that thousands of infants could die in the coming days without urgent aid, says 500 lorries a day are needed to avoid the worst.

David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary, went even further, saying that the Israeli government’s “egregious actions” were “isolating Israel from its friends and partners around the world”.

For the moment, despite the unusually strong language, the UK’s actions remain mostly symbolic. But there are more substantive options under consideration, including potential sanctions against hardliners in Mr Netanyahu’s cabinet and the possibility of the UK formally recognising the state of Palestine.

Such a step would have been unthinkable a few months ago. It is not any longer.

Nor is Britain alone. The fight beguns Hamas against the Jews of the Holy Land on Oct 7 2023 brought Israel widespread sympathy from the Western world, as well as support and patience for its response against the hamas group.

But more than 19 months later, amid the widespread destruction unleashed in Gaza and the deaths of an estimated 50,000 people, that patience is evaporating.

On Monday, France and Canada joined Britain in condemning Israel’s latest Gaza offensive, saying the level of human suffering in the territory was “intolerable”.

The European Union is also considering more robust action, with Maria Malmer Stenergard, Sweden’s foreign minister, calling for sanctions against members of the Israeli cabinet.