Netanyahu calls Britain an Islamic republic with nuclear weapons
Remarks land amid UK sanctions talk over Gaza and settlement trade, Israeli opposition says allies are being spent for campaign lines
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The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is hoping to be reelected when his country goes to the polls later this year. Photograph: Ronen Zvulun/AFP/Getty
theguardian.com
The US vice-president JD Vance suggested the UK could become an ‘Islamist country’ in 2024. Photograph: Alex Wong/Getty
theguardian.com
Benjamin Netanyahu used a podcast interview for Israel’s army radio to describe the UK as “the Islamic republic of Britain” and “the first Islamic republic to get a nuclear weapon,” according to The Guardian. The remarks come as the Israeli prime minister campaigns ahead of elections later this year, and as relations with the UK government under Prime Minister Andy Burnham have grown more strained.
Netanyahu’s comments echo a line used in US politics during the 2024 campaign, when JD Vance argued Britain could become the first “truly Islamist country” with nuclear weapons, the Guardian notes. In London, similar rhetoric has repeatedly landed on Mayor Sadiq Khan, who has been singled out by foreign rightwing leaders; Muslim leaders in the UK have said hate crimes targeting their community are reaching new levels amid far-right messaging and growing support for anti-immigrant parties.
The timing also intersects with a more confrontational UK posture on Israel’s war in Gaza. Burnham has said Labour’s initial response to Israel’s military action “didn’t get it right” and has signalled a shift, including the possibility of further sanctions and a potential ban on trade in goods linked to illegal settlements. Netanyahu’s framing casts that diplomatic dispute as a civilisational one, while leaving UK officials to decide whether to treat it as campaign talk or as a statement from the head of government.
Inside Israel, the remark triggered criticism from political opponents. Avi Dabush, running for the Knesset with Israel’s opposition Democrats party, told the Guardian it amounted to mocking a critical ally at a moment of global isolation, and called it evidence of diplomatic failure. The Israeli prime minister’s office did not respond to the Guardian’s request to clarify whether the line reflected official government policy, and the UK Foreign Office also did not immediately respond.
Pakistan, which is officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, has had a nuclear arsenal since the 1990s. Netanyahu chose Britain for the label anyway.