Tag: Press Release

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 9 June 2026.

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper announces co-ordinated sanctions with international partners targeting individuals and entities involved in financing and enabling settler violence in the occupied West Bank.

• Foreign Secretary to set out tougher UK action in response to record settlement expansion and rising settler violence in West Bank, and push for urgent implementation of the 20 Point Peace Plan
• UK brings together Australia, Canada, France, New Zealand and Norway to deliver co-ordinated sanctions against networks financing and enabling settler attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank, and firmly advises British businesses against activity in illegal Israeli settlements 
• UK takes further action to support recovery in Gaza, including providing £1 million for humanitarian demining, and at least £10 million supporting the PA to navigate the fiscal crisis and sustain critical services

In a statement to Parliament today, the Foreign Secretary will announce that the UK, alongside partners (Canada, France and Norway) is imposing new sanctions. The UK will impose sanctions on 6 entities and one individual involved in financing, enabling and carrying out settler violence in the occupied West Bank. Australia and New Zealand published co-ordinated sanctions last week.   

Australia, Canada, France, Norway, and the United Kingdom have all taken the historic decision to recognise the State of Palestine, reflecting the rights of the Palestinian people and as part of our common efforts to protect the viability of the two-state solution. Today, they are acting together again in support of the same objectives. 

Those designated will face asset freezes and, where appropriate, travel bans and Director Disqualifications. These sanctions will disrupt the flows of finance that have allowed extremist settler groups to act with impunity in the West Bank and demonstrate the UK’s commitment to a two-state solution. 

The UK position remains clear: settlements are illegal under international law, they undermine international efforts to secure a just, lasting peace in the Middle East, and they risk doing permanent damage to the prospects of a secure and viable Palestinian state being able to live in peace alongside a secure Israel.  

For the first time, the Foreign Secretary has also announced that the UK’s official guidance will explicitly advise businesses against economic and financial activity in illegal settlements. The UK continues to support trade with Israel within 1967 lines, but states that there should be no economic involvement in illegal settlements.  

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper is expected to say: 

Today we are acting with our international partners to sanction those who support and sponsor violence against Palestinian communities in the West Bank.

Settler expansion and violence is illegal and a fundamental threat to the viability of a two-state solution, and to long-term peace and security for Palestinians and Israelis.

These measures show the UK is leading with our partners to target those who are fuelling this violence.

These steps come against a backdrop of continued illegal settlement expansion including the E1 project, which further undermines the viability of a two-state solution, and record levels of settler violence designed deliberately to destroy Palestinian homes and livelihoods in the West Bank. 

The UK continues to urge the Government of Israel to end settlement expansion, clamp down on settler violence, prosecute those responsible, and lift ongoing restrictions on the functioning of the Palestinian economy. The UK will not hesitate to take further action if the situation does not improve. 

Today’s measures form part of a wider UK effort to advance peace and security in Israel and Palestine. This includes action to support implementation of the 20 Point Plan for Gaza and protect and strengthen a viable Palestinian state.  

The Foreign Secretary is also expected to announce today that the UK will provide an additional £1 million for humanitarian mine action in Gaza in addition to the £4 million already contributed. She will call on the Government of Israel to open all crossings and remove arbitrary restrictions on the delivery of humanitarian aid and equipment to ensure that UK aid can reach all those who desperately need it.

She will also announce that she will travel to Paris this week in advance of the Peace Building Conference, which is bringing together Israeli and Palestinian civil society, and international partners dedicated to advancing the two-state solution.

In addition, the Foreign Secretary will confirm at least £10 million in financial and technical assistance to the Palestinian Authority in 2026, including support to navigate the fiscal crisis and sustain frontline services such as healthcare. 

Background 

Sanctioned individuals and entities include: 

• The Farms Association: provides financial and organisational support to Israeli settler farms and outposts in the West Bank, including those associated with violence, intimidation and forced displacement of Palestinians 
• Ahavat Gilad: serves as a financial conduit for the Farms Association, channelling donations to settler outposts including those associated with violence against Palestinians 
• Ari Yshag: fundraises for illegal settler outposts associated with violence, intimidation and forced displacement of Palestinians 
• Artzenu: promotes, finances and resources settler farms and outposts associated with violence against Palestinians, including fundraising for tactical military equipment for armed settler squads 
• Shivat Zion Lerigvey Admata: the registered legal vehicle through which Artzenu’s financial activities are conducted, channelling donations to outposts linked to serious human rights abuses 
• Eyal Hari Yehuda: construction and demolition company that facilitates, supports and is responsible for owners, staff, associates and family members who have used company resources while hired on construction and demolition jobs in the West Bank to destroy Palestinian land and property, as well as physically attack, shoot and kill Palestinians, which has led to the wider displacement of Palestinians
• Itamar Yehuda Levi: owner of EYAL HARI YEHUDA COMPANY LTD (also designated today) that facilitates, supports and is responsible for owners, staff, associates and family members who have used company resources while hired on construction and demolition jobs in the West Bank to destroy Palestinian land and property, as well as physically attack, shoot and kill Palestinians, which has led to the wider displacement of Palestinians

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 3 June 2026.

Dr David Hall has been appointed His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Republic of Djibouti, in succession to Mr Vinay Talwar, who will be transferring to another Diplomatic Service appointment.

Dr Hall will take up his appointment during October 2026.

Curriculum vitae 

Full name: David Ian Hall 

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 3 June 2026.

Mr Chair, only a just and lasting peace in Ukraine, one that safeguards its sovereignty, will deter further Russian aggression. The United Kingdom’s commitment is unwavering: we will maintain pressure on Russia, continue supporting Ukraine’s Armed Forces, and help secure a peace that endures.

President Putin expected a swift victory. More than four years on, he has achieved none of his strategic aims, while inflicting immense suffering on Ukrainians and on his own people.

And make no mistake, militarily Russia is under severe strain. The Director of the UK’s Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) recently confirmed intelligence indicating nearly 500,000 Russian soldiers have been killed since the start of the full-scale invasion, assessing that the Russian military is “going backwards on the battlefield”. Monthly losses remain extremely high, while territorial gains have slowed markedly in 2026. The already devastatingly slow rate of advance has halved so far in 2026. This illegal campaign only serves to consume vast resources, inflict mass casualties for limited, reversible gains.

Yet a state under pressure can still inflict immense suffering, as recent strikes and threats demonstrate. On 23–24 May, Russia launched one of the largest air assaults on Kyiv, damaging or destroying more than 30 residential buildings. In May alone, Russia fired 197 missiles, including 72 ballistic or hypersonic, alongside hundreds of daily drone strikes, levels that have now become deeply alarming in their regularity. In its latest mass attack on Monday night and early Tuesday morning, Russia launched 656 drones and 73 missiles, resulting in the death of at least 18 civilians and leaving dozens injured. This was the largest ballistic/hypersonic missile attack since the full-scale invasion. Russia has not acknowledged responsibility for any of this.

Civilian suffering continues to intensify. In the first four months of 2026, civilian casualties increased by 21% compared to the same period in 2025. Since the start of the full-scale invasion, at least 16,149 civilians have been killed and more than 46,000 injured. The United Nations projects that up to 504,000 additional people could be displaced this year, with a further 2.7 million affected by ongoing strikes.

Russia’s warnings of “systematic strikes” on the capital and the targeting of decision-making centres are wholly unacceptable. Despite threats and warnings to evacuate, missions have remained in place, with the G7 and partners making clear they will continue to stand alongside Ukraine. This sustained presence sends a clear signal: attempts at threats intimidation will not succeed, and the international community remains engaged and visible in Kyiv.

Russia’s actions so clearly violate the core OSCE principles: sovereignty, territorial integrity, and the prohibition of the use of force. The Code of Conduct makes clear that such actions are a matter of direct and legitimate concern to all participating States, requiring solidarity and coordinated response.

Ukraine has demonstrated repeatedly that it is the party of peace, including by agreeing to a full, immediate, and unconditional ceasefire, and by engaging constructively with partners. Russia, by contrast, has failed to engage seriously. It continues to advance maximalist demands tantamount to Ukraine’s surrender, while prolonging negotiations and intensifying attacks. Russia continues to demand that Ukraine withdraw from areas it has failed to occupy after years of fighting. That is not diplomacy, it is attempted coercion.

Mr Chair, Russia can end this war now, by engaging seriously in negotiations, withdrawing its forces, and respecting Ukraine’s sovereignty. The United Kingdom is fully committed to supporting Ukraine’s sovereignty, security and right to self-defence. Thank you.