Signage comes down at UK consulate in East Jerusalem as deadline passes amid sanctions spat

Workers at the British consulate in East Jerusalem are removing the signage as a deadline expires amid a diplomatic spat over sanctions, witnesses say.

Workers in the consulate remove a plaque reading “British Consulate General” and another sign for its consular section. The British flag is still flying over the building. There was no immediate comment from the consulate, which Israel had ordered closed by today.

Last month, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced a series of countermeasures against the United Kingdom in response to British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband’s announcement of what Sa’ar called a “hostile” sanctions package targeting West Bank settlements, “and following a series of anti-Israel decisions by the Labour government over the past two years.”

France and Canada joined Britain in the settlement sanctions, but Israel has not taken action against them.

Britain has warned Israel that it could expel 27 Israeli diplomats from the embassy in London if Israel follows through on its decision to close the British consulate in East Jerusalem, where 27 British diplomats work, according to an unsourced Ynet report on Monday.

The incident has highlighted growing frustration among Israel’s longtime allies over its escalating settlement actions in the West Bank.

Britain cited Israeli government-backed plans to expand settlements and rising settler extremist attacks targeting Palestinians in the West Bank. The British sanctions are to take effect next year.

The British consulate, in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem, handles the country’s relations with Palestinians in the city as well as in the West Bank and Gaza. It also provides consular services to Palestinians. Britain’s embassy is in Tel Aviv.