[LPHR has today submitted an urgent action letter to the UK Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper MP, following the West Bank annexation measures recently approved by Israel’s security cabinet. The two-page letter can be read below. A PDF version is available here]
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12 February 2026
Dear Secretary of State,
Re: UK Government recognising Israel’s accelerating de facto annexation of the West Bank and must take commensurate action of suspending trade concessions and ending settlement trade
We write following the alarming decision by Israel’s security cabinet on 8 February to significantly expand and accelerate its de facto annexation of large parts of the West Bank. We agree with the analysis by the expert Israeli NGO, Peace Now, that:
“The cabinet’s decision shows that this is not about deepening annexation in Area C, but about dangerous and irresponsible sovereignty measures also in Areas A and B, and about breaking every possible barrier on the path to massive land theft in the West Bank. This is an extreme and irresponsible government dragging us toward disaster.”
As you will be aware, the measures approved include allowing direct land purchases in the West Bank by settlers; cancellation of the requirement for a transaction permit to purchase land; opening local land registries for public review; renewing a government mechanism to allow Israel to purchase land from Palestinians; and stripping Palestinian powers in Hebron and Bethlehem.
Moreover, the decision newly empowers Israeli enforcement and oversight acts in areas administered by the Palestinian Authority (Areas A and B). This means that in addition to Israel’s long-standing practice of carrying out demolitions and preventing Palestinian development in Area C – taken pursuant to its overarching policy of annexing large parts of the West Bank – it will implement these measures within areas under the PA’s jurisdiction in the entire West Bank, if it considers that Palestinian construction in Areas A and B harms heritage, agriculture, environment or water resources.
The UK Government’s statement on 9 February does apparently allude to Israel’s transparent annexation policy for the West Bank when condemning Israel’s security cabinet decision:
“The UK has been clear: any unilateral attempt to alter the geographic or demographic make-up of Palestine is wholly unacceptable and would be inconsistent with international law. We call on Israel to reverse these decisions immediately.”
We would, however, urge the UK Government to be specifically explicit in its language, so as to ensure that there exists no doubt that it clearly recognises that Israel’s Government is systematically pursuing de facto annexation of large parts of the West Bank. This would be in line with recent precedents by the UK Government that properly acknowledge Israel’s unmistakable acts of annexation of Palestinian territory. The New York Declaration signed by the UK Government on 29 July 2025 calls on Israel to “immediately halt all… annexation activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory”. The UK was also co-signatory to two statements on the deteriorating situation in the West Bank in December 2025, which asserted: “We recall our clear opposition to any form of annexation”.
It is reasonable to infer from these express references to annexation that the UK Government importantly recognises that de facto annexation of large parts of the West Bank is being actively pursued by the Israeli Government, while also re-stating its position on the inadmissibility of Israel’s enactment of domestic legislation proclaiming East Jerusalem as part of its capital. We would be grateful for confirmation that this does accurately reflect the UK Government’s position.
The International Court of Justice stated in its 2024 advisory opinion that Israel’s de jure and de facto annexation of large parts of Palestine violates its territorial integrity, as an essential element of the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination, and that prolongation of annexation undermines the future exercise of this right. We take the view that annexation is the overarching serious breach of international law that drives all of Israel’s severe and pervasive human rights violations in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. International law is essential here as it imposes identical obligations on all States in response to annexation of territory, irrespective of whether the annexation of territory is de facto or de jure. The legal obligations on all States consist of duties not to recognise as lawful, nor to aid or assist, an illegal situation, and to cooperate to lawfully bring an illegal situation to an end.
We therefore urge the UK Government to effectively uphold international law in response to this urgent context of serious violation, by taking the following two lawful and proportionate actions:
ban the import of settlement products, and
suspend trade concessions with Israel due to material breach of the human rights and democracy principles clause in the UK-Israel Trade and Partnership Agreement (‘TPA’).
On 17 September 2025, the European Commission proposed to the Foreign Affairs Council that it suspend trade concessions with Israel. This followed its investigation that found Israel to be in violation of Article 2 of the Association Agreement between the EU and Israel, which provides that respect for democratic principles and human rights constitute an essential element. Article 2 was incorporated without modification into the extant UK-Israel TPA. We consider that the UK Government should follow the European Commission’s example and undertake an investigation examining the need for suspension of trade concessions with Israel due to material breach of the human rights clause in the UK-Israel TPA. Such an outcome would constitute a lawful and commensurate response to promote the end of this specific violation. It would also align with the UK’s customary international law duty to lawfully bring any form of annexation to an end.
Important acts taken by the UK Government in the past year have regrettably not had a deterrent effect on Israel’s Government. It is necessary, legitimate and proportionate for the UK to now commence lawful application of economic consequences, on the basis that Israel’s Government is clearly accelerating its destructive annexation policy in Palestine in serious breach of international law.
We would be grateful for your careful consideration of the above and for your written reply.
Yours sincerely,
Tareq Shrourou (Director), Edita Maric and Natalie Sedacca
Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights