What prompted UK sanctions on illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank?

The United Kingdom has imposed sanctions on illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank after Israel authorized companies to bid on constructing the E-1 settlement. This proposed development would be located between Ma'alei Adomim and occupied East Jerusalem, creating a barrier of Israeli control that analysts say would separate Palestinian cities and make a contiguous state impossible.

The measures follow United Nations reports of record-high settler attacks and a British foreign policy statement labeling those attacks as ethnic cleansing. Officials note the sanctions will only affect a small portion of trade and are unlikely to change Israeli policy. The government hopes that joining other nations in applying economic pressure will eventually prompt a policy shift.