Israel Bars Corbyn, 11 UK Lawmakers Over Settlements Sanctions

Israel's Foreign Ministry announced Tuesday it is barring entry to twelve British nationals, including former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and eleven other lawmakers, in retaliation for the UK's recent sanctions against Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The list also includes Labour MPs Naz Shah, Diane Abbott, John McDonnell, and Richard Burgon, alongside Green Party representatives Hannah Spencer, Carla Denyer, Sian Berry, Ellie Chowns, and Adrian Ramsay. The twelfth individual is lawyer Fahad Ansari, who represented Hamas in its legal efforts to be removed from the UK's terror watchlist. Ansari, responding on X, called the ban a "badge of honor." The Israeli ministry did not specify the exact reasons for each individual's ban but stated generally that those involved in "anti-Semitic and anti-Israel activities" or who "deny the very existence of the State of Israel" would be refused entry. This move is part of a broader set of countermeasures unveiled by Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's approval, in response to the British sanctions. Israel also announced the closure of the British consulate in Jerusalem, the withdrawal of British representatives from an international center supporting Gaza in Kiryat Gat, and the cessation of British training for Palestinian Authority forces in the West Bank.