Britain

UK Chief Rabbi Slams Israel Sanctions

Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis warns that government measures will only strengthen extremism and fuel hostility toward the Jewish state

Eliana Fleming

SEP 8, 2026 20:00

2 min read

Britain's Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis issued a sharp rebuke Tuesday evening following the Labour government's decision to impose sanctions targeting Israel and Israeli settlements in the West Bank. In his statement, Rabbi Mirvis described the move as "truly a dark day for British Jewry."

The chief rabbi accused the government of disregarding the serious concerns raised by many in the Jewish community. He characterized the announced measures as political posturing that caters to what he called "false anti-Israel rhetoric" and those harboring what he termed a "dangerous obsession" with the Jewish state. Rather than curbing extremism, Rabbi Mirvis warned, these sanctions will only embolden it.

Speaking on the eve of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, Rabbi Mirvis emphasized the timing's particular sensitivity. He noted that the British Jewish community currently feels more vulnerable than ever amid rising extremism in recent years, and argued that the sanctions do nothing to advance peace. "They also do not make anyone safer, quite the opposite," he stated.

Rabbi Mirvis concluded with a warning about the broader implications of such policy decisions. He said gestures of this nature only fuel increasingly hostile discourse surrounding Israel. The cumulative effect of such policies and punitive measures, he cautioned, serves to encourage those both in Britain and abroad "who use hatred as a weapon against Jews."