A letter published in the Guardian argues that the UK's response to flagrant breaches of international law is "pathetic" and that sanctions against a few individuals have no effect.
Sanctions against individuals ineffective
The letter, written by Bernie Evans of Liverpool, notes that Israeli individuals have had sanctions imposed on them for over a year with absolutely no effect. It suggests that people such as Itamar Ben-Gvir, the Israeli minister of national security, likely see sanctions as some sort of badge of honour.
Evans addresses figures including Andy Burnham and Ed Miliband, stating they must realise by now that the only sanctions likely to have any effect are those imposed against the state of Israel. He describes denouncing the issue of tenders for the E1 settlement near Jerusalem as an "unacceptable and destructive act" as box-ticking.
Criticism of settlement policy
The letter acknowledges Miliband's statement that all Israeli settlements in the West Bank are a "flagrant breach of international law" but points out that their construction has been going on for years. Evans suggests that had the UK and others had the courage to take action when the first ones were built, it is unknown how many lives could have been saved.
Calls for effective action
Evans references a UN international commission of inquiry reporting ongoing genocide in Gaza, war crimes and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank, and the callous murder of journalists and "ecocide" in southern Lebanon. He concludes that criticising recent events as illegal and inhumane while taking no effective action is frankly pathetic.
