Civil society urgently demand UK Government ban imports of goods from Israel’s illegal settlements to protect against widespread involvement in money laundering
12 March 2026 London: 21 UK, international, and Palestinian civil society organisations, including UK trade unions, have written to the government to demand a total ban on imports of goods produced in Israel’s illegal settlements.
This follows a demand by 119 MPs last week for further sanctions against Israel and an end to illegal settlement trade. The UK must take concrete steps to halt imports as Israel escalates state violence in the West Bank and accelerates its unlawful plans for annexation, and more widespread violations of international law.
Every day the Secretary of State for Business and Trade fails to stop imports of goods from illegal settlements the UK is breaching its international law obligations and exposing the British public to potential involvement in money laundering.
The production of goods for international export is crucial for the economic viability of the settlements, drives further settlement expansion, and normalises the illegal occupation.
Ihsan Adel, Founder and Chair of Law for Palestine said, “Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory are illegal under international law. They are also a key mechanism for the de facto annexation of Palestinian land and are therefore established in violation of peremptory norms of international law. This illegality has been affirmed by the International Court of Justice, the United Nations, and governments including the UK and those of the European Union.
The Court was clear that all states, including the UK, have an obligation not to recognise, aid, or assist in maintaining situations created by these violations. Continued trade with illegal Israeli settlements risks breaching these obligations. The United Kingdom must therefore take immediate steps to ensure that its policies and practices do not contribute to maintaining this unlawful situation of occupation and settlement enterprise.”
GLAN lawyer, George Collecott said, “UK law is clear – knowingly selling a good produced on Israel’s illegal settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is a criminal money laundering offence. The government’s failure to ban trade with the illegal settlements exposes the public to widespread criminality. The government has the power to remedy this situation immediately. It imposed a comprehensive ban on goods imports from Russian occupied areas of Ukraine. Why is Israel’s illegal occupation any different?”
* Read the full text of the letter here.
– Global Legal Action Network (GLAN) is a U.K. based legal non-profit organisation with offices in the U.K. and Ireland. GLAN works with affected communities to pursue innovative legal actions across borders to challenge powerful actors involved in human rights violations and systemic injustice.
* Contact Abbi Casey acasey@glanlaw.org for further comment or queries
– Law for Palestine (L4P) is a civil society organisation registered in the UK and Sweden that works on the legal questions around Palestinian self-determination in domestic, regional, and international legal fora, through knowledge production, legal action, and capacity building.
* For further comments or queries, please contact communication@law4palestine.org
