{"id":2385,"date":"2026-10-09T13:03:53","date_gmt":"2026-10-09T08:03:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/?p=2385"},"modified":"2026-10-09T13:03:53","modified_gmt":"2026-10-09T08:03:53","slug":"uk-renames-east-jerusalem-consulate-as-mission-after-israeli-closure-order","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/?p=2385","title":{"rendered":"UK renames east Jerusalem consulate as mission after Israeli closure order"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The United Kingdom\u2019s consulate in occupied East Jerusalem will continue operating with a reduced staff under the name \u201cUK Mission, Jerusalem\u201d after Israel ordered its closure amid a diplomatic dispute over British sanctions on Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.<\/strong><\/p>\n

British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said the consulate building would remain open following discussions with Israeli officials.<\/p>\n

He added that the mission would continue providing essential services and supporting the Palestinian people.<\/p>\n

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Thursday that Israel had permitted the UK to maintain a limited presence at the site with seven diplomats.<\/p>\n

He added that 20 diplomats, including the British consul general, were ending their assignments and would leave Israel.<\/p>\n

Reuters journalists saw workers remove a plaque bearing the words \u201cBritish Consulate General\u201d from the building, along with a sign for its consular section. The British flag, however, remained flying above the premises.<\/p>\n

Miliband said the UK did not recognise Israel\u2019s legal authority to close the consulate. The building is located in East Jerusalem, which Israel captured during the 1967 war and has occupied since.<\/p>\n

In a statement, Miliband said the building would not close and would instead operate as the UK Mission, Jerusalem.<\/p>\n

He added that Britain had withdrawn some staff and their families in recent weeks but would now work to strengthen its presence.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Diplomatic tensions over settlements<\/h3>\n

The closure order came in response to British measures against Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, including a ban on imports of goods produced in the settlements.<\/p>\n

Saar said Israel had established a principle that actions taken against it would prompt appropriate retaliatory measures. He said the latest steps followed his announcement on September 8.<\/p>\n

The United Nations and most countries consider Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory illegal under international law, while Israel disputes this position.<\/p>\n

Miliband said the UK would not take retaliatory action against Israel while discussions between the two sides continued. His remarks came amid speculation that Britain could expel Israeli diplomats in response.<\/p>\n

Reporting from London, Al Jazeera journalist Camille Nedelec described the change in the consulate\u2019s status as a low point in relations between the two countries. She said dozens of diplomats were leaving or had already departed.<\/p>\n

Israel had maintained that the consulate would close, while the UK sought to keep it operating. The two sides held discussions, including a visit to Israel by Britain\u2019s national security adviser the previous week.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Long-standing British presence<\/h3>\n

The UK\u2019s diplomatic presence in Jerusalem dates back nearly 200 years, well before Israel was established in 1948.<\/p>\n

The closure dispute does not affect the British Embassy in Tel Aviv, which manages the UK\u2019s diplomatic relations with the Israeli government.<\/p>\n

Located in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood of occupied East Jerusalem, the consulate has handled British relations with Palestinians in Jerusalem, the occupied West Bank and Gaza. It also provides consular services to Palestinians.<\/p>\n

Despite the diplomatic tensions, the UK and Israel maintain close economic, security and intelligence ties.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The United Kingdom\u2019s consulate in occupied East Jerusalem will continue operating with a reduced staff under the name \u201cUK Mission, Jerusalem\u201d after Israel ordered its closure amid a diplomatic dispute over British sanctions on Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said the consulate building would remain open following discussions with Israeli officials. He added that the mission would continue providing essential services and supporting the Palestinian people. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Thursday that Israel had permitted the UK to maintain a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-english"],"gutentor_comment":0,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2385","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2385"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2385\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2385"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2385"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2385"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}