NIGEL Farage has told Israel he would reverse sanctions applied by Labour if he was in government in what the country's foreign minister has described as a "great conversation".
Earlier this week, UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband announced the UK will ban the import of goods from illegal Israeli settlements in Palestine .
Israel immediately responded by closing the British consulate in East Jerusalem and banning 11 MPs and a campaigner from the country .
Israeli foreign minister Gideon Sa'ar posted on Twitter/X on Wednesday he had had a "great conversation" with Farage as the Reform UK leader pledged to "undo the damage caused by Labour".
He posted: "Great conversation with Reform UK leader @Nigel_Farage following the anti-Israel moves by the Labour Government.
"I thanked him for his and his party’s support for Israel. He told me he was pleased to have addressed the Reform Friends of Israel event at the party conference in Birmingham last week, and assured me unequivocally that, in government, Reform UK would reverse the damage done to the UK-Israel relationship by the Labour Government and its policies."
Farage posted himself that he had been "pleased" to speak with Sa'ar.
Pleased to speak with Gideon Sa’ar. I emphasised the Falklands issue to him and its importance to the British people, though I understand Israel’s relationship with President Milei. A Reform government would undo the damage caused by Labour. https://t.co/V26fBMHbWm
— Nigel Farage (@Nigel_Farage) September 9, 2026
He said: "Pleased to speak with Gideon Sa’ar. I emphasised the Falklands issue to him and its importance to the British people, though I understand Israel’s relationship with President [Javier] Milei.
"A Reform government would undo the damage caused by Labour."
Earlier this week Argentina’s government said it will file criminal charges against the Israeli energy company Navitas Petroleum and its executives for operating in the Falkland Islands.
The government alleges the firms violated Argentinian law by holding hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation licenses issued by the UK in the North Falkland Basin.
Miliband said he “regrets” Israel’s response to a ban on trade with illegal settlements in the West Bank, but insisted it was “the right thing to do”.
He acknowledged that the closure of the consulate, which represents the UK in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, would be “damaging”, but said the UK Government had “weighed up the costs and benefits in advance of this”.
The Foreign Secretary has been urged to go further as he stopped short of imposing a full arms embargo on the country.
Jean McLean, Oxfam’s chief influencing officer, described Miliband’s announcement as a “significant and welcome step towards respecting international law and supporting Palestinian rights” but said he must go further.
She said: “British-made arms components fuel ongoing genocide in Gaza , continuing to kill and maim civilians.
“The UK must now extend this ban further to include all services and investment in illegal Israeli settlements, immediately halt all arms sales to Israel when they might be used to commit international law violations, and use every diplomatic and economic tool at its disposal to push for an end to the unlawful occupation and support Palestinian self-determination.”
Amnesty International UK also said the decision "could be the sea change that is needed", with chief executive Kerry Moscogiuri adding: "The test now is whether these commitments are properly implemented and enforced, and followed by the wider action needed to hold Israel accountable for its crimes and meet the UK’s obligations under international law.”
Andy Burnham is also under growing pressure to block an Israel-linked oil field following the announcement .
The Prime Minister has been urged to reject the Rosebank development “as part of fulfilling” the UK Government ’s responsibility to end its support for Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine ,
Ithaca Energy owns a 20% stake in Rosebank, which is in turn majority owned by the Israeli firm Delek Group.
Delek is listed on a UN “blacklist” of companies which have “directly and indirectly enabled, facilitated and profited from the construction and growth of the settlements”.
