British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband has pledged a sweeping overhaul of UK policy toward Israel, vowing to prevent British companies from financing, constructing, or advertising illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank. Speaking in parliament, Miliband specifically condemned the E1 settlement plan — a large housing project between East Jerusalem and the settlement of Ma'ale Adumim that critics say would split the West Bank in two and make a viable Palestinian state impossible — calling it "the crossing of a red line." The announcement signals growing pressure on Israel from its traditional allies, with the UK joining over 20 countries, including France and Germany, in declaring E1 "unacceptable," while ministers indicated that a broader trade ban linked to illegal settlements may also be forthcoming.