MAP NEWS QUOTE: UK recognition of Israel’s illegal occupation and ban on imports from illegal settlements a "substantial and welcome shift"

Steve Cutts, CEO at Medical Aid for Palestinians, said: “We welcome the UK Government’s recognition that Israel’s occupation is unlawful and its commitments to a package of actions. The decision to ban imports of goods from illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and take action against specific services that sustain them is a substantial and welcome shift, and a hopeful signal that the UK is finally ready to take action against Israel’s settlement project and policy of ethnic cleansing after decades of impunity.

"The consequences of Israel’s occupation are not abstract. Every day our teams witness how settler terrorism has critically undermined access to healthcare. Military closures, checkpoints and other restrictions that sustain the settlement project routinely block Palestinians from reaching essential health services. Patients requiring urgent treatment are delayed or refused passage, leaving people to bleed, suffer, and sometimes die while waiting for checkpoints to open.

"While in Gaza – nearly a year into the so-called ‘ceasefire’ – the Israeli military continues to kill Palestinians with impunity and critically obstruct vital aid and medical supplies. We welcome the commitment to support accountability for what has happened in Gaza and to expand the UK’s suspension of arms licenses that materially contribute to the occupation. These measures must be comprehensive in scope and implementation.

"We know that Israel’s atrocities will only truly end when impunity does. Today's decision by the UK gives momentum to attempts to uphold international law and protect Palestinians. But this must not be the limit of UK action. We urge the government to continue to seize this important opportunity."

[ENDS]

Our spokespeople are available to interview on request, either in London or in the West Bank. Our UK advocacy colleagues can go to Milbank for broadcast interviews. Please contact the press office to arrange at: [email protected] or +44 (0) 203 869 1310

• According to the WHO, There were 98 attacks on healthcare in the West Bank between 1 January and 31 July 2026, while 87 Palestinians were killed during violence in the West Bank during the same period.
• Attacks on healthcare more than quadrupled, from 8 in June to 37 in July alone
• This year alone, WHO has recorded attacks on 83 ambulances and other health transport, and 11 attacks on health facilities themselves, across the West Bank.
• Between 1 January and 31 July, WHO documented 92 incidents involving obstruction of healthcare and 66 incidents use of force against healthcare
• 925 movement obstacles now block Palestinians across the West Bank — checkpoints, closures during military operations, sieges on hospitals, and restrictions that stop ambulances reaching the critically injured, according to WHO.