Criticism Over UK Arms Sales to Israel
Human rights organizations and independent organizations in the country accuse the UK of being “complicit in Israel’s war crimes” for failing to halt arms sales to Israel, which violates international humanitarian law in Gaza. According to figures released by the UK Department of Trade and Business, more than 100 export licenses have been approved for the sale of arms, military equipment and other controlled items from the country to Israel as of October 7, 2023. As of May, the number of existing arms and military equipment export licenses “with a destination specified in Israel” had reached 345.
According to the Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT), the total value of military equipment and arms trade from the UK to Israel in the last 10 years has reached £495 million. The UK government provides arms trade companies with a “standard licence” that limits the amount of product sold and the service provided, and an “open licence” that does not limit the number or service provided. In the last 10 years, 1,335 standard licenses and 66 open licenses have been granted to companies selling arms to Israel. The most notable of these licenses are:
| Product Category | Number of Licenses |
|---|---|
| Radar parts | 160 |
| Aiming equipment parts and components | 98 |
| Electronic warfare equipment components | 94 |
The UK government has approved a total of 229 export licenses for trainer aircraft, drones, fighter jets and other military aircraft. Companies have received a total of £183m worth of military technology export licenses and £127m worth of aircraft, helicopters and drone technology and equipment export licences. However, CAAT data does not include information on the volume of products sold under open licenses granted to companies for specific products.
CAAT also announced the arms export licenses granted by the UK after October 7, 2023. During this period, 13 export licenses with a total value of £666,000 were granted to companies wishing to sell weapons from the country to Israel between October 7 and December 31 , 2023. During this period, companies received licenses for various military products:
- Military helmet: 3 licenses
- Protective clothing items: 2 licenses
- Protective clothing: 3 licenses
- Explosives: 1 license
- Armored vehicles: 1 license
- Military aircraft communication equipment parts: 1 license
- Submarine and general military aircraft parts: 2 licenses
The value of the licenses that the UK has given to companies selling arms to Israel through 2023 has reached 17 million pounds. According to research by the London-based Action Against Armed Violence (AOAV), companies selling arms from the UK to Israel include British companies, Israeli companies that manufacture in the country and multinational companies that the UK is a part of. The country’s largest defense industry company, BAE Systems, is at the forefront of these companies. BAE Systems manufactures parts that make up 15 percent of the F-35 and also manufactures some parts for fighter jets such as the F-15 and F-16.
According to AOAV data, BAE Systems shares have increased by 12 percent since the start of Israel’s attacks on Gaza on October 7, 2023. In addition, Elbit Systems, another company that manufactures in England, is one of Israel’s most important unmanned aerial vehicle manufacturers and also manufactures for the British army. Leonardo UK, the UK company of Italian Leonardo, manufactures parts for the radar systems that Israel uses to monitor Gaza.
According to CAAT, there are also military products that are not licensed for sale to Israel from the UK, but are assembled in other countries and sold to Israel. These include the MRLS M270 multiple rocket launcher systems and the Paveway II laser-guided missiles manufactured by Raytheon. Raytheon assembles this product in the US, and the companies that manufacture its parts include British companies.
UK Violates International Law
AOAV Director Iain Overton, in his statement to AA, emphasized that the UK continues to sell arms to Israel despite the decisions of the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court. Overton stated, “Between October 7, 2023 and May 2024, the UK government issued 108 arms export licenses to Israel, including military and non-military categories, bringing the total number of active licenses to 345.”
Israel’s continued attacks and the failure to halt arms sales despite allegations of war crimes raise concerns about breaches of international law and court rulings. Overton said: “The International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC) have both indicated the risk of genocide in Gaza and serious breaches of international humanitarian law by Israel. Despite these warnings, the UK has not withdrawn any arms export licenses or refused new applications.”
Overton, who stated that continuing arms sales from the UK to Israel risked making the country “a collaborator in genocide and war crimes”, warned that “Britain’s continued arms sales facilitate Israel’s actions”. In addition, Dania Abu Elhaj, Legal Affairs Officer for the UK-based International Center for Palestinian Justice (ICJP), stated that the UK was “complicit” in the war crimes committed by Israel, and summarized the situation with the following words: ” This complication amounts to aiding and abetting war crimes that are currently being committed on the ground before our eyes”.
“We believe the UK should not be granting any licenses to businesses that supply arms to Israel or any regime that commits atrocities on the scale we are witnessing in Gaza today,” Abu Elhaj said.
The international aid organization Oxfam has also described the UK’s continued sale of arms to Israel, while sending humanitarian aid to Gaza and calling for peace, as “moral inconsistency.” Oxfam accuses the British government of helping to fuel the conflict by continuing to sell arms to Israel.
More than 600 lawyers and academics in the UK, including three former Supreme Court judges, have warned that “the UK is violating international law by continuing to arm Israel.” Despite calls from the public and the international community, the country has not stopped selling arms to Israel. David Cameron, the last Foreign Secretary of the Conservative Party government that changed on July 4, stated that they had decided to continue arms sales based on legal reviews submitted to the government. Former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak stated that his country “will not change its position on arms export licenses to Israel.” However, Conservative Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden emphasized that arms sales to Israel are “legal.”
