Eastwood welcomes British suspension of 30 arms export licences to Israel

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy made the announcement at Westminster after lawyers advised items exported under the licences might be used to commit serious violations of international humanitarian law.

Mr. Eastwood said he has been urging the new government to suspend arms exports following what he described as ‘clear evidence of a genocide in Gaza’.

“Gaza has been reduced to ashes. Entire families and communities have been erased as a result of the appalling genocide being inflicted on Palestinians by Netanyahu’s government.

"There is no sanctuary - hospitals, schools, playgrounds, family homes all destroyed under an unrelenting, unconscionable bombardment.

“Governments around the world have been far too slow to respond. We have watched, in real time, as war crimes have been conducted against a civilian population streamed on our televisions and phones. It is a stain on the international community.

“Today's announcement that the British Government will suspend 30 arms exports licences is of course welcome. Removing the tools of genocide from a government that has been eager to deploy overwhelming and devastating deadly force against children can only be a good thing,” said the outgoing SDLP leader.

Mr. Lammy told MPs the British Government had a legal duty to review export licences and that its Strategic Export Licensing Criteria stated that the Government will ‘not issue export licences if there is a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of international humanitarian law’.

“It is with regret that I inform the House today that the assessment I have received leaves me unable to conclude anything other than that, for certain UK arms exports to Israel, there exists a clear risk that they might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of international humanitarian law.

"I have informed my right hon. Friend the Business and Trade Secretary [Jonathan Reynolds]. Therefore, he is today announcing the suspension of around 30 licences, from a total of approximately 350, to Israel, as required under the Export Control Act 2002.

"These include licences for equipment that we assess is for use in the current conflict in Gaza, such as important components that go into military aircraft, including fighter aircraft, helicopters and drones, as well as items that facilitate ground targeting. For transparency, the Government are publishing a summary of our assessment.”

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Mr. Lammy said the move was not ‘a blanket ban’.

“The suspension targets around 30 of approximately 350 licences to Israel in total, for items that could be used in the current conflict in Gaza. The rest will continue,” he said.

Back in January the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Israel to take measures to ensure its military does not commit any acts in breach of the genocide act, and to prevent and punish incitement to commit genocide, after South Africa applied for provisional measures to protect ‘the Palestinian people under the Genocide Convention’.

Ms. Blinne Ní Ghrálaigh, an Irish barrister who worked for a legal firm representing the Bloody Sunday families during the Saville inquiry, told the ICJ Israel’s bombardment of Gaza was ‘the first genocide in history where its victims are broadcasting their own destruction in real time’.

Israel contests the claims.

The now retired ICJ President Judge Joan E. Donoghue later said the court order was without prejudice to its final judgment on South Africa’s genocide case.

In May, Karim Khan, Prosecutor at the separate International Criminal Court (ICC), applied for arrest warrants for the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Defence of Israel Yoav Gallant and the Hamas-leaders Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh (since assassinated in Tehran), stating that they bore criminal responsibility for a series of war crimes.

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Mr. Netanyahu responded: "The outrageous decision by the ICC prosecutor, Karim Khan, to seek arrest warrants against the democratically elected leaders of Israel is a moral outrage of historic proportions. It will cast an everlasting mark of shame on the international court.”

In late July Mr. Eastwood asked Mr. Reynolds’ department if he would make an assessment of ‘the potential implications for Government policy on arms export licenses to Israel of the decision of the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to issue arrest warrants for the Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of Israel’.

Minister of State Douglas Alexander said: “The Government assesses export licences against the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria. We will continue to monitor developments as part of the assessment process.

"The Foreign Secretary met with President Netanyahu in Israel on July 14 and pushed for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages, the upholding of international law, and a rapid increase of aid into Gaza.”

Following the decision to suspend a limited number of arms export licences Mr. Eastwood said: “I hope this move is interpreted as a clear statement by Netanyahu and his government.

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"This has to stop now. Hamas must release the hostages they have taken and Israel must abandon its attempt to erode and erase the population of Gaza.”

Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, speaking in the House of Commons on Monday, suggested Mr. Lammy would be ‘well aware of the decisions made by the ICJ and the ICC’.

"He will also be well aware that the world has condemned Israel for its illegal occupation of the west bank, the settlement policy and the killing of 40,000 people in Gaza.

"On the suspension of some arms contracts, can he explain what effect that will actually have on Israel’s ability to continue the bombardment of Gaza, or will it continue unabated?” he asked.

Mr. Lammy replied: “He must know that our arms exports to Israel amount to about 1 per cent of its arms; in fact, the United States, Germany and others are much more engaged in selling arms to Israel, so when he asks about the effect, he can draw his own conclusions.”

War crimes must be stopped and international community must prevent genocide