According to figures from the Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT), the UK arms to Israel export was valued at £119 million between 2013 and 2016.
According to figures from the Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT), the UK arms to Israel export was valued at £119 million between 2013 and 2016.
The Friends of Al Aqsa organization has created the #StopArmingIsrael campaign, calling on the British government to stop funding Israeli war crimes. This campaign is pushing for the UK government to cancel its arms export licenses to Israel.
UK-made weapons are currently used to oppress Palestinians by using excessive and violent force, making their daily lives unbearable. According to figures from the Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT), the UK arms to Israel export was valued at £119 million between 2013 and 2016.
Military exports to Israel in 2016 included electronic warfare equipment such as missiles, with almost half the total spent was used on military aircraft, missiles, and radars, and other control equipment. These controls assist in targeting missiles into Gaza, where on top of these military assaults, there is an ongoing humanitarian crisis.
These weapons have caused over 39,512 injuries and 2,623 deaths of Palestinians in the last 3 years. They have also permitted the systematic oppression of the Palestinians in their use by the Israeli military and police forces, who use these weapons violently towards Palestinians at checkpoints, on illegal house raids and in the prison system.
FOA has drafted up a petition for us all to sign and join in calling on the UK government to stop aiding Israel and its apartheid state, which can be found below. To sign the petition, click here!
“We the undersigned, express deep concern at the continued sales of British military hardware and technology to Israel.
Israeli attacks on Gaza started on Monday are being intensified and [as of Friday 14 May] has resulted in the killing of 122 Palestinians, including 31 children and 900 injuries.
The UK government has approved over £490 million worth of arms exports to Israel since 2014, including components for sniper rifles, grenade launchers and armed drones. These types of armaments are being used indiscriminately by Israel against civilian Palestinians.
The United Kingdom’s government rightly emphasises human rights on the world stage. Based on Human Rights values, the UK government claims it will prevent arms sales to country’s that do not: “respect international law”; where there is a clear risk of the equipment being used for “internal repression”; and or to “assert by force a territorial claim”.
It is clear Israel is in breach of these policies, yet the UK government continues to issue arms export licenses to Israel.
We therefore demand:
The UK government implement a comprehensive and immediate ban on all British military hardware and technology sales to Israel.”
FOA hopes to send this petition to the foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, in 30 days time (14 June) – so be sure to get as many people involved in this campaign as you can!
Find the petition here.
