Over 100 former French and British diplomats call for joint sanctions on Israel over Palestinian territories

Aug 22, 2026

A group of 102 former French and British diplomats has published an open letter in Le Monde calling on French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Andy Burnham to impose joint sanctions on Israel. The signatories, including former UN envoys Jeremy Greenstock and Emyr Jones Parry, accuse Israel of "ethnic cleansing" in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. They urge their governments to halt arms transfers, suspend trade agreements, and ban trade with illegal settlements to safeguard the Palestinian right to self-determination following both nations' recognition of Palestine in 2025.

Former diplomats' joint letter

▪An open letter signed by 102 former French and British diplomats was published in Le Monde on August 22, 2026, calling for joint action against Israel.
▪The open letter was addressed to French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, with copies sent to British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband.
▪The 102 signatories of the open letter include 52 former French diplomats and 50 former British ambassadors, many of whom served in senior Middle East postings.

Israeli settlement expansion

▪The E1 settlement project tenders issued by Israel propose the construction of 1,200 homes that would bisect the occupied West Bank.
▪The former diplomats' letter was published two days after the United Kingdom, France, and nine other countries condemned the Israeli government's publication of construction tenders for the E1 settlement project.

Ethnic cleansing accusations

▪The open letter accuses Israel of carrying out ethnic cleansing in East Jerusalem and the West Bank through house demolitions and rampant settler violence.
▪The open letter asserts that the world no longer views Israel as a genuine democracy because of its policies of depriving Palestinians of their rights and land.

Proposed UK-France sanctions

▪The signatories proposed banning all trade with Israeli settlements, including goods, investments, insurance, and other financial services.
▪The former diplomats urged France and the United Kingdom to suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement and the UK-Israel Trade and Partnership Agreement over human rights breaches.
▪The letter urges making it a criminal offense for British and French citizens to purchase property on stolen Palestinian land and removing charitable status from organizations funding settlements.
▪The open letter calls for a suspension of all arms transfers to and from Israel, as well as an end to bilateral military cooperation.

Palestine state recognition

▪France and the United Kingdom officially recognized the State of Palestine in 2025.
▪The former diplomats criticized the Palestinian political leadership as unrepresentative and dysfunctional, calling for democratic renewal in elections scheduled for November.

International law accountability

▪The open letter argues that France and the United Kingdom must act together to hold those responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity accountable to rebut accusations of double standards.
▪The signatories stated that the Israeli government is destroying prospects of an independent Palestinian state by showing contempt for the International Court of Justice and United Nations Security Council resolutions.