This month marks the fifty-fifth anniversary of Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip, making it one of the longest military occupations in recent history. It has inflicted horrendous injustices on the Palestinian people.

The United Kingdom’s approach to the occupation has been disingenuous. On one hand, it has claimed it sought to uphold international law by noting the illegality of Israel’s network of settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. On the other, it has done nothing to deter Israel from expanding them. Even worse, the UK has effectively incentivized their economic growth by failing to ban the trade in Israeli settlement goods.

Now the UK’s commitment to international law is about to be tested again as it enters into negotiations with Israel on a Free Trade Agreement to “upgrade” an existing Trade and Partnership Deal.