From the Liveblog of
Thursday, October 8, 2026
Israel targeting UK diplomatic presence in ‘logical’ response to ‘torrent of one-sided moves’ — Israeli official
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleLazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter
Israel’s measures against the UK in recent months — including today’s closure of the East Jerusalem consulate, which has been downgraded to a mission — have been “very specific, and very logical,” an Israeli diplomat tells The Times of Israel.
The British diplomatic presence in Israel has been used to target Israel, claims the diplomat, and recent moves by Israel have been a “perfectly logical response to what they’ve been doing.”
The UK has been forced to recall dozens of diplomats and military personnel, including 12 from the International Gaza Support Center in Kiryat Gat and others involved in training Palestinian Authority police officers in the West Bank, and 20 from the consulate in East Jerusalem.
“It’s a logical, measured diplomatic response to a torrent of one-sided, anti-Israel moves,” says the diplomat.
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