The UK has reportedly engaged in behind-the-scenes talks to avoid a backlash from the US over anti-Israel sanctions scheduled for announcement today.

According to a report by Bloomberg, Andy Burnham’s government is expected to ban trade with Israeli settlements in the West Bank today.

Burnham is seeking to pursue a firmer stance on an issue of high importance to the governing Labour Party, though one that risks angering US President Donald Trump.

Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband will unveil a new sanctions regime targeting Israel but limited to Jewish settlements in the West Bank, according to sources familiar with the matter.

Burnham and Trump spoke by telephone on Monday, the Prime Minister’s Office said. A statement noted that the two leaders discussed a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinian territories.

The discussion suggests that Burnham used the call to notify Trump that sanctions against Israel were imminent.

The proposals under review included a new sanctions regime with measures to block the exchange of goods and services with Israeli settlements.

Miliband also evaluated expanding existing human rights sanctions to encompass the blocking of aid, which has drawn criticism for exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

The Foreign Secretary further considered explicitly endorsing the International Court of Justice’s non-binding 2024 opinion that declared Israel’s occupation of territory currently recognised by the UK as the State of Palestine to be unlawful.

Even so, UK officials fear the announcement could cause an early setback in Burnham’s relationship with Trump.

To defuse a backlash from the Trump administration, British diplomats privately informed the US that the sanctions are largely symbolic and will have no tangible impact on the UK’s broader trade or security ties with Israel, according to sources familiar with the discussions.

The proposals were drawn up after Israel decided to issue tenders for the construction of 1,200 settlement housing units in an area of the West Bank.

Disputes between Israeli settlers and Palestinians have intensified in recent months as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces a difficult battle to retain his seat in a general election scheduled for 27 October.

Burnham joined the leaders of Canada and five European governments, including France, Germany, and Italy, in signing a statement that condemned the housing plan as “unacceptable” and urged Netanyahu to withdraw the tender.

In a separate statement, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz condemned a call by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir for “nightly assassinations” in Gaza.

Burnham is eager to demonstrate early to the Labour Party that he is adopting a more critical approach toward Israel than his predecessor, Keir Starmer.

Although Starmer hardened his stance against Israel during his two years in office, including by formally recognising the State of Palestine, his initial refusal to demand that Netanyahu halt military operations in Gaza divided the party.

This division led to a decline in Labour’s poll ratings and boosted electoral gains for the Green Party across the country.

Burnham’s return to Parliament last month led to Starmer’s resignation. Burnham apologised for Labour’s handling of Israel’s military operation in Gaza under his predecessor, stating that the party “did not adopt the right stance”.

Last month, Burnham’s new Defence Secretary, Wes Streeting, who faced intense competition from a Muslim independent candidate in his northeast London constituency at the last general election, stated that Israel had fallen “short” of international standards.

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told the BBC’s “Newsday” programme that there would “undoubtedly” be a US response.

Accusing the Labour Party of “discriminating against the Israeli government”, Huckabee said: “It is like throwing a rock and not knowing where it lands. The UK is a sovereign country and can do as it pleases, but so is the US.”

Republican Florida Congressman Randy Fine also warned that British firms would be barred from doing business with local governments in the state if sanctions were imposed.

In a post on X, Fine said: “Florida has made its stance clear. Any company—or country—that boycotts Israel will be boycotted by Florida.”

Labour MPs and Jewish groups have warned the government that any sanctions against the settlements could amount to a “de facto boycott” of Israeli goods and compromise the safety of British Jews.

The US administration is working on a post-war strategy focused on containing Iran and expanding the normalisation of relations between Israel and its neighbours.

According to Axios, although the plan remains in the draft stage, it is intended to guide the US approach to the Middle East once the war with Iran concludes and across the final two years of President Donald Trump’s term in office.

Two major events cast a shadow over the planning process: the Israeli elections scheduled for 27 October and the US midterm elections in November.

US officials state that initial work on the strategy is being conducted both at senior political levels within the Trump administration and at an interagency working level.

According to sources, Trump has held two meetings with senior advisers in recent weeks where the plan was discussed and concepts were floated.

In private conversations, Trump reportedly said he is working on “something much bigger” in the Middle East following the war with Iran.

According to sources, three primary elements have been put forward as prospective components of the strategy:

Establishing a regional alliance among US allies, guaranteed by the US, in order to contain Iran.

Pursuing a joint effort to bring the regional fallout of the 7 October 2023 Al-Aqsa Flood operation toward a conclusion by securing the next phase of Trump’s Gaza plan, signing a security agreement between Israel and Syria, and implementing the Israel-Lebanon agreement.

Expanding the Abraham Accords and reaching a normalisation agreement between Saudi Arabia and Israel.

The Trump administration hopes that the new Israeli government formed after the 27 October elections will be willing and able to cooperate on the post-war strategy.

However, some US officials emphasise that Trump will push for the implementation of this strategy regardless of the Israeli election results, even if the vote leads to political deadlock.

A source familiar with the process stated that drafting the strategy would take several more weeks. “They are working on it, but it is not finished yet,” the source said, adding:

“The aim here is to connect many moving parts in the region; how to build a regional alliance after the war. It is not yet clear whether all US allies in the region will participate in this process.”

US military drones commenced reconnaissance flights over the Al-Miskad mountains in Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland region shortly after sunset on 3 September.

Speaking to news outlet Drop Site, Puntland security officials said surveillance targeted the Togga Miraale and Togga Baalade areas, identified by local authorities as strongholds of Islamic State militants.

Officials reported that the drones identified suspected Islamic State fighters travelling by donkey cart in the Togga Baalade area, prompting airstrikes at around 20:30.

Conducted concurrently with reconnaissance operations over the Al-Madow mountains in the Sanaag region, where Al-Shabaab maintains a presence, the operation concluded a period of relative calm in US strikes across Somalia.

US Africa Command (AFRICOM), which oversees US military operations in Somalia, did not respond to requests for comment. However, Puntland security officials noted that they expect US air operations in the country to intensify further in the foreseeable future.

At the centre of this military expansion lies a new US military base planned for the Gulf of Aden port city of Bosaso, which was announced last month.

While local officials maintain that US air support is indispensable in combatting the Islamic State, American operations across the region have drawn criticism over the deaths and displacement of thousands of civilians.

Situated on the Gulf of Aden, through which roughly 25% of global maritime traffic passes, Bosaso has a population of 1 million and serves as a critical human smuggling corridor for East African migrants moving towards Yemen and the Arabian Peninsula.

The area is emerging as the focal point of a US initiative to militarise one of the world’s most strategic maritime routes. On land, intense combat between US-backed Puntland regional forces and Islamic State militants has continued in the Al-Miskad mountains for nearly two years.

The US administration characterises the arid, mountainous terrain of northern Somalia as the central hub from which the Islamic State directs its global operations.

Security sources in Puntland stated that Washington is de facto expanding its military footprint by constructing a new base in Bosaso, which will be utilised directly for combat, reconnaissance, and maritime security operations.

Officials emphasised that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) would also expand its regional footprint.

Agreement signed behind closed doors

An AFRICOM delegation headed by special operations commander Major General Claude Tudor met Puntland President Said Abdullahi Deni in Bosaso on 2 August.

Following the meeting, the presidency of the semi-autonomous region, which is nominally subordinate to the central government in Mogadishu, announced in an official communiqué that a new memorandum of understanding had been reached.

The statement noted that the US would expand its military base in Bosaso to enhance counter-terrorism operations and safeguard maritime security.

However, five separate Puntland security officials who spoke to Drop Site argued that the official announcement distorted the true nature of the agreement.

Noting that the US had never previously possessed a military base in Bosaso, officials stated that the existing presence consisted solely of an “office” operated as an intelligence centre by AFRICOM and the CIA. Under the new project, a military installation will be established in the region from scratch.

Under current arrangements, AFRICOM personnel stationed at the Bosaso office provide liaison between Puntland ground forces and the command’s primary headquarters in neighbouring Djibouti whenever air support is required.

Officials noted that once the new base being built on the grounds of Bosaso Airport is completed, the US will conduct airstrikes and combat sorties directly from the city.

Security sources said most Somali delegation members photographed at the 2 August signing ceremony were unaware of the agreement’s details, explaining that the outline of the accord had been finalised during a secret meeting between Deni and the AFRICOM delegation in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, on 27 July.

“The Americans walked into the room, pulled out the draft, and the text was signed by Deni. Everything had already been cooked up in Addis Ababa,” one official said.

The CIA as “Big Brother” and covert transfers

US airstrikes in Somalia reached record levels under Donald Trump. Having ordered an operation against a senior Islamic State target in Somalia shortly after taking office, the Trump administration conducted 205 airstrikes in the country, according to data compiled by think tank New America. Direct hits on Islamic State targets accounted for 53% of those operations.

The Islamic State network in Somalia was formed in 2015 when British-Somali cleric Abdiqadir Mumin and affiliated militants broke away from Al-Shabaab to pledge allegiance to the group.

After holding the Gulf of Aden coastal town of Qandala for 38 days in 2016, the group retreated into the Al-Miskad mountains. Over time, it evolved into an organisation in which foreign fighters, primarily from Ethiopia and other regional states, formed the majority.

Puntland security officials stated that CIA personnel in Bosaso interrogate captured high-ranking foreign Islamic State operatives and exert unquestioned authority over decisions, acting like a “big brother”.

Officials said Abdiweli Mohamed Yusuf (Abdiweli Walalac), the financial chief of the group’s Somali wing who was placed under sanctions by the US Department of the Treasury in 2019, was interrogated at this office following his capture and covertly transferred to Djibouti the next day.

Concealing himself among local Bedouins in the rural Xumbeys area of the Bari region, Abdiweli was captured on 25 July last year in a helicopter raid conducted by the Puntland Intelligence and Security Agency (PISA) alongside US elements.

Officials stressed that the operation, previously presented to the public as “US-backed”, was directly controlled on the ground by American forces, with air cover also provided personally by the US.

New local strike force under formation

It has emerged that the Bosaso agreement is not limited to air operations, but also provides for the US to establish a new local strike force to conduct counter-terrorism missions in the region.

Although troop numbers have not yet been finalised, the force’s salaries, equipment, and military training will be entirely funded by the US.

Washington has pursued similar military structures in Somalia in the past. Established after 11 September, the Puntland Security Force (PSF), which saw US support cut in 2020, faced accusations of involvement in civilian casualties and clashes within populated settlements. Under Barack Obama, “Danab” (Lightning), an elite unit established to fight Al-Shabaab across southern and central Somalia, was equipped directly by the US.

During an 18-month offensive across the Al-Miskad mountains in Bari province, the group was reportedly pushed back significantly, with at least two-thirds of slain militants killed directly in US airstrikes.

Nevertheless, local sources reported that Islamic State pockets persist in the rugged mountain terrain, which they compared to Afghanistan’s “Tora Bora”, while displaced civilians remain unable to return to their villages because of bombings and looting.

Base construction in Bosaso also raises grave constitutional disputes under Somali law. Under the Somali constitution, the authority to conclude military agreements with foreign states rests exclusively with the federal central government in Mogadishu.

The Somali Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Information did not respond to questions regarding whether they were briefed in advance on the military accord signed between the Puntland administration and the US.