In a sharp escalation of diplomatic tensions following the Netherlands’ national ban on goods from Israeli occupied West Bank settlements, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced Sunday that his government has revoked the working credentials of all Dutch diplomats based in Ramallah, giving the delegation seven days to surrender Israeli-issued diplomatic documentation.
In an official post shared to the social platform X, Sa’ar confirmed that after the one-week deadline passes, all Israeli-granted diplomatic privileges and immunities extended to these Dutch envoys will officially lapse. Under the new Israeli order, the Netherlands will only be permitted to maintain its representation of interests to Palestinian authorities from land controlled by the Palestinian Authority, rather than using sovereign Israeli territory as an operational base, Sa’ar added.
This retaliatory measure did not emerge out of nowhere. It came in direct response to the Dutch government’s implementation of a nationwide ban on September 22, which prohibits the import, purchase, and sale of all goods originating from illegal Israeli settlements built on occupied Palestinian land. The ban puts the Netherlands in alignment with long-standing international legal positions: in announcing the policy, the Dutch government stressed that Israeli settlements in occupied territories violate international law, and the new measures fulfill the country’s obligation under international law to avoid contributing to the ongoing illegal situation.
The Netherlands is not the first European country to adopt such a policy. Its ban follows similar regulatory actions taken by Ireland, Belgium, and Spain in recent months, marking a growing European pushback against Israeli settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, a region that has seen a sharp surge in Israeli violence against Palestinian civilians and accelerated settlement growth over the past year.
Beyond diplomatic retaliation, the Israeli government has moved to cushion the economic impact of the European bans on settlement businesses. Leading Israeli financial outlet Calcalist reported that Israel’s Ministry of Economy and Industry is rolling out a support package for companies operating in illegal settlements, offering eligible businesses grants of up to 200,000 Israeli shekels, equal to roughly $54,000. The ministry will also assist settlement-based exporters in identifying and accessing alternative markets outside of the European Union, with target new markets including the Philippines, India, the United Arab Emirates, Chile, and Argentina, according to the report.
This report was originally published by Middle East Eye, an outlet that provides independent, on-the-ground coverage of the Middle East, North Africa, and surrounding global regions.