LONDON, June  10, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Britain and four allies joined forces 
Tuesday to sanction two Israeli ministers for "repeated incitements of 
violence" against Palestinians, upping their condemnation of Israel's actions 
around the war in Gaza.

       
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben 
Gvir will be banned from entering the UK and will have any assets in the 
country frozen, Britain's foreign ministry said in a statement.
       
The announcement was a rare joint action alongside Australia, Canada, New 
Zealand and Norway and comes as the Israeli government faces growing 
international criticism over its conduct of the conflict with Hamas.
      
The sanction sees the five countries break from Israel's closest ally, the 
United States.
      
 Ben Gvir and Smotrich "have incited extremist violence and serious abuses 
of Palestinian human rights", the foreign ministers of the five countries said 
in a joint statement.
       
"These actions are not acceptable. This is why we have taken action now -- 
to hold those responsible to account," they added.
      
 Smotrich and Ben Gvir are part of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin 
Netanyahu's fragile ruling coalition.
       
Both have drawn criticism for their hard-line stance on the war in Gaza and 
comments about settlements in the occupied West Bank, the other Palestinian 
territory.
       
Smotrich, who lives in a West Bank settlement, has supported the expansion 
of settlements and has increasingly called for the territory's annexation.
      
 Last month, he said Gaza would be "entirely destroyed" and that civilians 
would "start to leave in great numbers to third countries".
       
Ben Gvir has also called for Gazans to be resettled from the besieged 
territory.
       
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said the pair have used "horrendous 
extremist language" and that he would "encourage the Israeli government to 
disavow and condemn that language".
       
Earlier, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said Israel had been informed 
by Britain of its sanctions decision, describing the move as "outrageous".
       
The UK foreign ministry said in its statement that "extremist settlers have 
carried out over 1,900 attacks against Palestinian civilians since January last 
year".   - 'Personal capacity' -
       
       
It said the five countries were "clear that the rising violence and 
intimidation by Israeli settlers against Palestinian communities in the West 
Bank must stop".
       
"Measures today cannot be seen in isolation from events in Gaza where 
Israel must uphold international humanitarian law," the foreign ministry said. 
      
 It added that the UK and its partners "support Israel's security and will 
continue to work with the Israeli government to strive to achieve an immediate 
ceasefire in Gaza".
       
"Hamas must release the hostages immediately, and there must be a path to a 
two-state solution with Hamas having no role in future governance," it added.
       
The action comes after the British government suspended free-trade 
negotiations with Israel last month and summoned its ambassador over the 
conduct of the war.
       
It also announced financial restrictions and travel bans on several 
prominent settlers, as well as two illegal outposts and two organisations 
accused of backing violence against Palestinian communities.