The Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem, Aryeh King, on Monday called on the Israeli government to immediately cut water, internet, and other services to the British consulate in Jerusalem. He criticized the continued use of services provided by Israel by this consulate, pointing out that the British government considers its consulate to be on occupied territory.
Protests in Front of the British Consulate
King made these remarks while leading a small group of protesters who had gathered in front of the British consulate. This gathering took place less than a month before the deadline set by Israel for closing the consulate, and the number of participants was significantly lower than King's expectations. The protesters waved flags in support of the extremist party 'Otzma Yehudit'.
Britain's Response to Israeli Settlements
The Israeli Foreign Minister, Gideon Sa'ar, issued an order to close the consulate following the announcement of extensive British actions against Israeli settlements in the West Bank. These actions include plans to ban imports from the settlements to Britain. In his statements, Sa'ar accused Britain of hostility towards Israel, saying: "If you see Jerusalem as occupied territory, why do you use our services?"
King also announced that the consulate receives water from the 'Mekorot' company and telephone and internet services from the 'Bezeq' company. He urged Britain to cut off the services itself and not wait for Israel to act.
The British Foreign Secretary, Ed Miliband, described these actions last week as an effort to preserve the possibility of a two-state solution and to confront the expansion of settlements and the violence of settlers. He also emphasized that Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories is illegal and that "settler terrorists" are committing ethnic cleansing against Palestinians.
Israel reacted to these actions by not only closing the consulate but also expelling British representatives from the military-civil coordination center in Kiryat Gat and halting the training of Palestinian Authority security forces. King is also seeking a symbolic response from the municipality to this dispute and last week called for the renaming of 'King George Street' to 'Tabor Hertz'.
