Rights groups take UK govt to court over Israel arms sales
Rights groups and NGOs took the UK government to court on Tuesday accusing it of breaching international law by supplying fighter jet parts to Israel amid the war in Gaza.
Supported by Amnesty, Human Rights Watch, Oxfam and others, the Palestinian rights association Al-Haq is seeking to stop the government's export of UK-made components for Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets.
Israel has used the US warplanes to devastating effect in Gaza and the West Bank -- both Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories -- and the head of Amnesty UK said Britain had failed to uphold its "legal obligation... to prevent genocide" by allowing the export of key jet parts to Israel.
Around 50 protesters gathered outside court ahead of the hearings, waving Palestinian flags and placards with the words "STOP ARMING ISRAEL: STOP THE GENOCIDE".
The plane's refuelling probe, laser targeting system, tyres, rear fuselage, fan propulsion system and ejector seat are all made in Britain, according to Oxfam, and lawyers supporting Al-Haq's case said the aircraft "could not keep flying without continuous supply of UK-made components".
Opening their case against the government, lawyers said the UK's trade department had allowed exports of F-35 parts knowing there was a "clear risk" they would be used to commit violations of international law.
It is not certain when a decision could be made following the four-day hearing at London's High Court, which marks the latest stage in a long-running legal battle.
Lawyers for the Global Action Legal Network (GLAN) have said they launched the case soon after Israel's assault on Gaza began, following the October 7, 2023, attack in Israel by militants from Hamas.
Israel has repeatedly denied accusations of genocide.
The lawyers said the UK government had decided in December 2023 and again in April and May 2024 to continue arms sales to Israel, before suspending licences in September 2024 for weapons assessed as being for military use by the Israeli army in Gaza.
The new Labour government suspended around 30 licences following a review of Israel's compliance with international humanitarian law.
But the partial ban did not cover British-made parts for the advanced F-35 stealth fighter jets.
A UK government spokesperson told AFP it was "not currently possible to suspend licensing of F-35 components for use by Israel without prejudicing the entire global F-35 programme, due to its strategic role in NATO and wider implications for international peace and security".
"Within a couple of months of coming to office, we suspended relevant licences for the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) that might be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of International Humanitarian Law in Gaza," they said.
- 'UK not a bystander' -
The government insisted it had "acted in a manner consistent with our legal obligations" and was "committed to upholding our responsibilities under domestic and international law".
But GLAN described the F-35 exemption as a "loophole" which allowed the components to reach Israel indirectly through a global pooling system.
Charlotte Andrews-Briscoe, a lawyer for GLAN, told a briefing last week the UK government had "expressly departed from its own domestic law in order to keep arming Israel", with F-35s being used to drop "multi-ton bombs on the people of Gaza".
The 2023 attack in southern Israel by militants from Palestinian group Hamas resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 52,862 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to the territory's health ministry, whose figures the United Nations deems reliable.
The figure includes at least 2,749 who have died since Israel ended a two-month ceasefire in mid-March.
"Under the Genocide Convention, the UK has a clear legal obligation to do everything within its power to prevent genocide," said Sacha Deshmukh, Amnesty International UK's chief executive.
"Yet the UK government continues to authorise the export of military equipment to Israel -- despite all the evidence that genocide is being committed by Israel against the Palestinian people in Gaza.
"This is a fundamental failure by the UK to fulfil its obligations."
Al-Haq's general director Shawan Jabarin said: "The United Kingdom is not a bystander. It's complicit, and that complicity must be confronted, exposed and brought to account."
lcm/jkb/gil
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Bloomberg
37 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Israeli Ministers Sanctioned Over Gaza Comments
The UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Norway, sanctioned two Israeli government ministers, Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, for inciting violence against Palestinian communities. Bloomberg's Stuart Livingstone-Wallace reports. (Source: Bloomberg)
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
US criticises UK decision to sanction two Israeli ministers
The US has condemned the UK's decision to sanction two Israeli ministers over 'egregious abuses' of human rights in Gaza. Donald Trump's secretary of state Marco Rubio said that the travel ban and asset freeze imposed on Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich 'do not advance US-led efforts to achieve a ceasefire' and called for the measures to be reversed. The UK is taking the action alongside Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Norway. Mr Rubio said that the US 'stands shoulder-to-shoulder' with Israel. UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said on Tuesday that the ministers had been 'inciting violence against Palestinian people for months and months and months, they have been encouraging egregious abuses of human rights'. In a post on X, Mr Rubio said that the 'United States condemns the sanctions imposed by the governments of United Kingdom, Canada, Norway, New Zealand, and Australia on two sitting members of the Israeli cabinet. These sanctions do not advance US-led efforts to achieve a ceasefire, bring all hostages home, and end the war.' The United States condemns the sanctions imposed by the governments of United Kingdom, Canada, Norway, New Zealand, and Australia on two sitting members of the Israeli cabinet. These sanctions do not advance U.S.-led efforts to achieve a ceasefire, bring all hostages home, and… — Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) June 10, 2025 He went on to say that America reminds 'our partners not to forget who the real enemy is'. 'The United States urges the reversal of the sanctions and stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Israel.' The sanctions against Israel's security and finance ministers were announced on Tuesday. Mr Smotrich and Mr Ben-Gvir both belong to right-wing parties which help to prop up Benjamin Netanyahu's fragile coalition government, and both have been criticised for their hardline stance on Gaza. Mr Smotrich has campaigned against allowing aid into Gaza, and also supported the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which are considered illegal under international law. Meanwhile, Mr Ben-Gvir has called for Gaza's people to be resettled from the territory. In a joint statement with the foreign ministers of the other nations who also imposed sanctions, Mr Lammy said that the two sanctioned ministers had incited 'serious abuses of Palestinian human rights' and described their actions as 'not acceptable'. The statement added: 'We will strive to achieve an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the immediate release of the remaining hostages by Hamas which can have no future role in the governance of Gaza, a surge in aid and a path to a two-state solution.' Downing Street said that the two men had been sanctioned in their 'personal capacities' and not 'their ministries and departments'. 'As the Israeli ambassador to the UK has said in recent interviews, their statements in their ministerial capacities do not even represent government policy,' a Number 10 spokesman said. The UK and other allies have upped pressure on Israel in recent weeks, amid aid shortages in Gaza and suggestions a large-scale offensive could be launched into the territory. It has been reported that only scarce amounts of aid is making it into the hands of people, and the slow flow of food and medicines has prompted warnings of famine and starvation.
Bloomberg
2 hours ago
- Bloomberg
What to Expect From Reeves' UK Spending Review
00:00 James, what can we expect then from this spending review for the chancellor. A crucial day for her and her team. What are you going to be scrutinizing? I mean, the reason it's crucial is this is a fifth of the UK economy in size 600 billion a year. We know that 200 billion is going to be the NHS, 39 billion defence. 94 in education, what is happening to the rest and also what is happening to the 134 billion they've put aside for capital investment? Of that we expect to see some go to housing roughly 40 billion and some get around investment. They've announced that 15 billion. This is the moment that Rachel Reeves says I was elected a Labour chancellor to do X and we find out what X is today and they're going to lean in. The expectations are they will lean in to that £134 billion, I should say, capital expenditures plan. That's the kind of headline they want to be pushing. What what is this going to mean for that for the chancellor who's seen the ratings in terms of the polls, not just for her, but the prime minister as well plummet on some of these decisions? Is this kind of a break, a make or break moment for the chancellor? How decisive is this moment going to be for that for the head of the UK Treasury? The way I would explain it is today we are casting a political die as the government, not the polls, not the politics, but the economics. The cold, hard cash. The shape of the next election will be decided today. The last spending review was done in Covid by Rishi Sunak, the one before that was 2015 pre Brexit. That's the kind of size of the event we are talking about today. And like you say, this could be the comeback moment for the Chancellor. Where growth comes from, this investment comes from this private sector is rejuvenated from this. It could also be the moment we find some quite difficult cuts and we find out about very tough decisions the UK Government will have to take in the years going forward.
