Netanyahu Calls UK ‘Islamic Republic of Britain’, Draws Criticism

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has described Britain as the ‘Islamic Republic of Britain’, drawing criticism from British Jewish leaders and a former Downing Street chief of staff amid growing tensions between Israel and the UK.

The remarks came during a podcast in which Netanyahu praised British writer Randolph Churchill for what he described as his “positive” coverage of Israel during the 1967 Six-Day War. Netanyahu then contrasted that coverage with Britain’s current political climate, saying: “Go find that in Britain today, which you could call the Islamic Republic of Britain,” according to translated comments published by Israeli media.

According to Al Jazeera, Netanyahu later appeared to refer to remarks made by JD Vance in 2022, when the US vice president suggested that Britain could become the first nuclear-armed “Islamist country”.

“Someone said the first Islamic republic with nuclear weapons will be the Islamic Republic of Britain,” Netanyahu said.

“We are making sure there won’t be another one here, in Iran,” he added.

The comments were criticised by a British and Irish Jewish group, which described them as hateful and divisive. Rabbi Charley Baginsky and Rabbi Josh Lev, co-leads of the Movement for Progressive Judaism, said: “At a time when antisemitism, anti-Muslim hatred and social division are causing real fear across our country, language of this kind is dangerous and irresponsible.”

“Prime Minister Netanyahu does not speak for British Jews. His words do not represent us,” they said.

Gavin Barwell, former Downing Street chief of staff to Prime Minister Theresa May, also criticised Netanyahu’s remarks, calling them “blatant Islamophobia”.

“Let’s hope everyone will now shed the pretence some still cling to that this man is any friend of Britain,” Barwell wrote in a post on X.

According to Al Jazeera, tensions between the Israeli and British governments have grown since the Labour Party came to power in the UK in 2024, despite the countries’ traditionally strong ties. Under former Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Britain paused free trade talks with Israel and suspended some arms export licences.

Britain, like France, has also imposed sanctions on far-right Israeli cabinet members Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich. Last year, the UK joined France, Canada and other allies in recognising a Palestinian state.

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham recently apologised for Labour’s initial response to Israel’s actions in Gaza, saying the party had been too slow to call for a ceasefire.

“That is why we need to do more, which includes looking at further sanctions on those involved in the violence in Gaza but also looking at measures to ban trading goods with illegal settlements,” said Burnham. “We’ve got to do more to put pressure on the Israeli government.”

Rodwan Abouharb, associate professor in international relations at University College London, said Netanyahu’s comments marked a “new low” in UK-Israel relations, while also pointing to an overlap in the two countries’ policy objectives towards Iran.

“Netanyahu’s comments may be more for domestic purposes, to shore up his fractured governing coalition,” Abouharb told Al Jazeera.