UK calls for end to settler violence, urges Hamas to give up arms, stresses ‘shared interest’ in stopping nuclear Iran

Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter

Ed Miliband, Britain’s new foreign secretary, arrives for a Cabinet meeting in Downing Street in London, July 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
Ed Miliband, Britain’s new foreign secretary, arrives for a Cabinet meeting in Downing Street in London, July 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband holds his first phone call with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, calling it “frank and constructive.”

He says he brought up “the sharp escalation of settler violence and settlement expansion, as well as the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.”

“I said Israel must crack down on violence in the West Bank, and must immediately end blockages on aid into Gaza,” says the UK readout.

The IDF calls accusations that it is stopping aid to Gaza “biased, recycled and misleading claims that are detached from the reality on the ground, promoted by interested parties as part of an effort to defame Israel and create a false impression of a humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.”

Miliband says he stresses that Hamas must give up its weapons, the IDF should withdraw, and US President Donald Trump’s 20-point-plan should move forward.

They also discuss their “vital shared interest in ensuring that we never see a nuclear Iran,” and the need to stamp out antisemitism.

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