Allies Warn Israel: Lift Gaza Blockade or Face Sanctions, Say UK, France, Canada
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Britain, France and Canada issued a joint ultimatum Monday, branding Israel’s renewed Gaza assault “egregious” and warning of “concrete actions, including sanctions” unless aid flows resume and settlement expansion stops. The statement came just as only five relief trucks—down from 600 a day during March’s cease-fire—crept through Kerem Shalom, a show of compliance the allies called “wholly inadequate.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, feeling pressure even from Washington, acknowledged the optics, saying Israel can’t afford “images of hunger” yet vowed to seize “full control of Gaza” and create IDF-guarded aid hubs. Humanitarian agencies have rejected that plan, warning famine still looms for the enclave’s two million residents and that forced southward displacement will deepen the crisis.
The allied threat marks the toughest public line London, Paris and Ottawa have taken since the war began. Each already restricts extremist settlers; broader penalties—trade suspensions, arms embargoes, asset freezes—are now on the table if Israel ignores demands to scale back its offensive and reopen multiple crossings. With 90 percent of Gazans displaced and death tolls climbing, diplomacy is tightening the vice even as bombs keep falling.
