Arieh King, a deputy mayor of Jerusalem, on Monday helped promote a demonstration calling on the Israeli government to follow through with its plan to close the U.K. consulate in the city that serves Palestinians and acts as a liaison between London and the Palestinian Authority.
“We demand action right now, and we’re concerned about a scenario where Israel’s government fails to act on its stated policy,” King told JNS.
On Sept. 8, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced the closure on Sept. 8 of the eastern Jerusalem consulate of the United Kingdom and formally gave Britain 30 days to shut the mission. This move was the harshest of a series of reprisal measures against the United Kingdom for announcing earlier that day that it would apply a ban on trade with Israelis in Judea and Samaria.
“The phone lines can be disconnected immediately, the water can be shut off right now. There’s no need to wait 30 days for those actions,” said King. Within the City Council of Jerusalem, King heads the Meuhadim faction, which is widely seen as affiliated with the Otzma Yehudit Party led by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
King said he expected at least a few dozen people to show up to the protest on Monday afternoon outside the British consulate in eastern Jerusalem in the Shimon HaTzadik neighborhood, or Sheikh Jarrah.
The United Kingdom uses its consulate in eastern Jerusalem as an unofficial embassy to the Palestinian Authority, and it maintains relations with Palestinian institutions.
Spain and France, whose relations with Israel have deteriorated after Oct. 7, 2023, also maintain consulates for relations with Palestinian institutions in eastern Jerusalem.
“When France recognized a nonexistent Palestinian state nearly a year ago, there was also talk in the government and in diplomatic circles following that move,” King noted. “Yet here we are, and both have consulates in Jerusalem. That’s what we don’t want to see happening with the United Kingdom,” he said.
King led a protest rally last year calling for the closure of the French consulate.
