Two weeks after Britain led a dozen Western countries in sanctioning Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria, the Trump administration has yet to act on Israel's request for help, according to The Times of Israel.
In the days after the announcement, Jerusalem asked Washington to intervene on its behalf, an Israeli official said. Israel hoped to stop the countries involved from moving quickly to implement their sanctions. No U.S. intervention has come.
British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband announced the measures on September 8. They include a ban on importing goods produced in Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria, coordinated with France and Canada. Eleven other Western countries quickly followed. In announcing the move, Miliband went so far as to accuse Israel of "ethnic cleansing" in the territory, a charge Israel rejects outright.
Israel hit back immediately. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar ordered Britain's consulate in Jerusalem closed and expelled British representatives from the U.S.-led coordination center for the Gaza ceasefire. He also ended the work of a Ramallah-based British military unit supporting Palestinian Authority security forces and barred entry to 11 British lawmakers and a solicitor.
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee condemned the British move in an interview with the BBC. He called it "irrational" and said it amounted to discrimination against Israel and the Jewish people. An administration official later said Huckabee's comments had not been coordinated with the White House or the State Department.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio signaled on the day of the announcement that Washington would not follow London's lead. "Obviously, we're not going to do what the UK did," he told reporters, adding that the U.S. does not want to see anything destabilizing in Judea and Samaria. Rubio said the administration had no further comment "as of this moment," leaving the door open to a firmer response. None has come.
Rubio also confirmed that the UK briefed Washington in advance. According to a Western official, the notice came in a phone call between British Prime Minister Andy Burnham and President Donald Trump. There was no request to hold off.
Trump has since distanced himself from the issue. The day after the announcement, he said he would speak with Israel to understand what was happening. On Tuesday, asked about the sanctions during a meeting with Burnham at the UN, Trump said: "I don't know about the move."
The Times of Israel reported that the administration's reluctance comes as Trump seeks a strong start with the new British prime minister. It also comes amid frustration in Washington, acknowledged by a U.S. official, over violence by Israeli residents of Judea and Samaria and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's opposition to the Board of Peace's plan for disarming Hamas.
The sanctions' backers have taken note of the muted U.S. response. Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide, whose country joined the UK-led measures, called the American reaction "very mild" and claimed it showed declining sympathy for Israel.
Pro-Israel lawmakers in the U.S. are not waiting for the White House. Florida Congressman Randy Fine warned that his state's anti-boycott law bars state and local governments from doing business with companies or entities that boycott Israel. More than 30 U.S. states have similar laws or executive orders on the books.
