UK government says Israel arms ban would 'undermine US confidence'
Britain’s newly-elected Labour government says a complete Israel arms ban would damage London’s diplomatic relations with Washington.
“It would undermine US confidence in the UK ... and set back relations,” Defence Secretary John Healey told Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, according to revelations by King Counsel Barrister, Sir James Eadie, in a written submission to a London court hearing on Monday.
Lawyers for Palestinian rights group, Al-Haq, had lodged a complaint at the London court, accusing No.10 of breaching UK law by allowing military equipment, particularly components for F-35 fighter jets, to be delivered to the Israeli regime despite accepting that they could be used in breach of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) in the continued onslaught on Palestinians in Gaza.
Eadie wrote in the court statement that Healey had given this advice to Reynolds back in July.
“A suspension of F-35 licensing leading to the consequent disruption for partner aircraft, even for a brief period, would have a profound impact on international peace and security.
“It would undermine US confidence in the UK and NATO at a critical juncture in our collective history and set back relations. Our adversaries would not wait to take advantage of any perceived weakness, having global ramifications,” Healey told Reynolds on July 18.
However, in early September the British government banned some of the arms exports to the Israeli regime, amid widespread condemnation of the UK's indirect involvement in the Gaza genocide.
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy told British lawmakers at the time that the partial ban would suspend 30 out of 350 arms export licenses for the country's arms manufacturers supplying military equipment to the Israeli regime.
He said an assessment by the Foreign Office had determined that there was a clear risk the arms, ammunition and military equipment sent to the Israelis could be used by the Zionist forces to violate IHL in Gaza.
The partial ban had been made based “on the assessment that Israel is overall not committed to compliance with IHL in Gaza, including in the conduct of hostilities,” according to Eadie's statement.
"The F-35 Carve Out accepts that there is clear risk that F-35 components might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of IHL but determines that in the exceptional circumstances outlined by the defense secretary, these exports should nonetheless continue," the statement said.
Meanwhile, the London court’s next hearing was set for January 2025.
UK-made parts make up 15 percent of the components used in the making of American F-35 jets which are widely used by the Israeli regime forces.
According to military experts and researchers, since the Israeli regime forces launched the war against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, they have relied heavily on F-35s for air strikes. More recently, the F-35s have been used for Israeli strikes on targets in Lebanon.
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