UK urges all Israeli parties to respect minorities following election

After right-wing Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu appeared poised to win elections with the help of extremist allies, the UK government has called for "respect for minority groups"

MENA

1 min read

The New Arab Staff & Agencies

03 November, 2022

A spokeswoman for Prime Minister Sunak made the comments after far-right parties appeared poised to win Israeli elections [Getty]

Britain on Thursday urged all politicians in Israel to respect minorities as Benjamin Netanyahu appeared set to return to power with the help of the extreme right.

"We would call on all Israeli parties to refrain from inflammatory language and demonstrate tolerance and respect for minority groups," a spokeswoman for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told reporters.

Sunak's new government also shot down a suggestion by previous prime minister Liz Truss that the UK embassy in Israel could be moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

"There are no plans to move the British embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv," the spokeswoman said, after Truss announced a review during her short-lived tenure.

"We looked at this issue under the previous administration and I can confirm there are no plans to move it."

The review, which could have seen Britain emulate former US president Donald Trump in relocating its embassy, sparked alarm from the Palestinian government and Christian leaders in Jerusalem.

The 2018 move by Trump broke with decades of international consensus on the status quo in Jerusalem. Israel illegally occupied and annexed the Palestinian eastern half of the city following the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.