The ruling today from the High Court, declining to block the British government’s sale of deadly F-35 parts to Israel during its genocide in Gaza is a disgraceful abdication of this government’s obligations under international law.
We salute the efforts of Al-Haq and Global Legal Action Network (GLAN) to bring this case; alongside the mass movement against Israel’s genocide in Gaza, it was one of the key factors in pushing the government to impose a limited ban on some arms going to Israel in 2024. At that point, the government admitted that Israel is not committed to complying with international humanitarian law and that arms set for use by Israel may be in use in human rights abuses. However, it also created a carve out for the supply of F-35 parts, arguing that any break in the supply of F-35s to Israel would cause a diplomatic rift with the United States which should outweigh its obligations under international law.
The F-35, touted as the world’s most lethal warplane, has been used extensively by Israel as part of its genocide in Gaza. Danish publication Information published an exposé last year showing how F-35s were used in an attack on al-Mawasi humanitarian zone on July 13, 2024 in which ‘mega bombs’ weighing almost a ton were dropped on civilians sheltering in makeshift tents, killing 90 and injuring over 300.
There is no doubt that thousands of Palestinian men, women and children have been killed or maimed over the past 20 months with the help of British-made components. It is an affront to the very notion of international law for the High Court to allow this horror to continue.
The ruling of the High Court today, that “it is not for a domestic court to decide whether the decision” to continue selling arms to Israel is permissible, confirms that responsibility for this action lies squarely with politicians. We know that this government will not make the right call of its own volition, but will only respond to massive public pressure.
Those of us who are horrified at the British government’s ongoing complicity in the war crimes being perpetrated against the Palestinian people must continue to build our movement and raise the demands for a complete end to all arms trade and far-reaching sanctions against Israel, and justice and freedom for Palestine.