Revocation of credentials in Ramallah

Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen summoned Israeli Ambassador Zvi Aviner Vapni to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in The Hague on 28 September 2026. The diplomatic confrontation follows Israel's decision on 27 September to revoke the accreditation of Dutch diplomats assigned to the Netherlands Representative Office in Ramallah. Israeli authorities ordered the eight affected diplomats to surrender their Israeli-issued credentials within seven days. The mission in the West Bank employs eight diplomats alongside ten local staff members.

“The import ban results from the obligation under international law not to contribute to an unlawful situation: the illegal settlements.”

The revocation strips the diplomats of their diplomatic immunity within Israel, where many reside, restricting their movement and operational capacity across the West Bank border.

Retaliation for settlement trade ban

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar stated that the expulsion responded to the Dutch ban on imports from Israeli settlements in the West Bank and the Golan Heights, which took effect the previous week. Sa'ar asserted that nations acting against Israel would lose regional influence and access.

“If the Netherlands wants to continue representing its interests before the Palestinians, it can do so through the territory of the Palestinian Authority instead of from the territory of the State of Israel.”

The diplomatic dispute led to the cancellation of the opening ceremony for a new Dutch embassy building in Tel Aviv, which was scheduled for 28 September. Dutch Foreign Ministry Secretary-General Christiaan Rebergen had travelled to the region to attend the event and meet personnel. The measures follow Israel's decision in August 2026 to exclude two Dutch officials from the international coordination center in Kiryat Gat monitoring aid to Gaza.

Controversy over Schiphol airport checks

Tensions expanded into passenger travel following reports that Dutch customs inspected luggage for settlement goods on flights arriving from Tel Aviv. United States Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee criticized the inspections on social media, while the Israeli Foreign Ministry issued a travel advisory warning citizens of intrusive baggage checks at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.

Dutch customs and the Jewish community organization Centraal Joods Overleg clarified that authorities performed standard sample checks rather than comprehensive passenger searches. Customs confirmed that roughly 15 passengers on a single flight underwent checks, explaining that inspections for settlement goods are conducted as routine sample controls alongside drug interdiction and tariff collection.

Diplomats facing expulsion8

Local staff10

Diplomats facing expulsion

8 people

Local staff

10 people

Data from the article text

Coordinated international trade policy

The Dutch cabinet approved the import ban in July 2026 following the July 2024 International Court of Justice advisory opinion regarding the legal status of the occupied territories. Other European countries, including Ireland, Spain, Belgium, and Slovenia, previously introduced similar trade bans on settlement products. On 8 September 2026, twelve countries, including the United Kingdom, France, and Canada, announced plans for national or European trade restrictions.

Israel has enacted comparable countermeasures against other European governments that adopted trade restrictions. Earlier in September, Israel ordered the closure of the British consulate in East Jerusalem, expelled British representatives from the Kiryat Gat aid center, and barred 11 British lawmakers from entering the country.