A total of 18 groups have come together to pressure Labour ministers.
A coalition of charities and campaigning organisation has joined forces to tell the government that all arms being transferred to Israel must end amid the ongoing genocide against Palestinians.
Earlier this week the UK Government suspended 30 of 350 arms licences to Israel, following legal advice on the issue.
Campaigners have said the government’s recognition of the clear risk that Israel is using UK arms in serious violations of International Humanitarian Law is a welcome step forward.
But the groups said that, given that recognition, and the clear and compelling evidence that the Israeli military is violating international humanitarian law, it is insufficient that the Government has failed to end all arms transfers to Israel.
In January, the International Court of Justice warned there is a risk that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, and has ordered that Israel cease actions that might be part of a genocide.
Charities said the failure of the UK government to suspend all arms transfers to Israel, leaving a significant loophole for parts used in F-35 fighter jets which have been used in attacks on so-called “safe zones,” means that it remains complicit in the death and destruction that Israel’s assault and siege have wrought on Palestinians in Gaza.
Medical Aid for Palestinians, Oxfam GB, the Welfare Association, Save the Children UK, Caabu (Council for Arab British Understanding), and Amnesty International UK are among those to endorse the statement.
They were joined by Islamic Relief UK, Action For Humanity, War on Want, Quakers in Britain, Interpal, Christian Aid, Amos Trust, Humanity & Inclusion UK, CARE International, ActionAid UK, Embrace the Middle East, and CAFOD.
For eleven months, humanitarian organisations have raised the alarm about Israel’s potential violations of international law, including the use of starvation and denial of water as weapons of war, attacks on civilian and so-called “safe” areas, and targeting of aid operations.
The humanitarian response has been strangled as a result, denying Palestinians the basic necessities needed to sustain life.
The inevitable consequence of these policies has resulted in more than 40,000 people killed, including more than 14,000 children, 90% of Palestinians in Gaza displaced, and the resurgence of polio in Gaza, after 25 years with no cases, putting 640,000 children at risk.
In a statement, the groups said: “Israel’s denial of access for UN mechanisms, human rights experts and journalists, and its rampant disinformation against UN agencies, has dramatically undermined efforts to document its violations. In that vein, we are deeply concerned that, in the two months since the new UK Government was elected, it has failed to engage with UK-based humanitarian organisations working in Gaza at a Ministerial level to seek their input on these issues.
“In this context, it is beyond time for the UK to recognise the Government of Israel’s disregard for international humanitarian law and active frustration of humanitarian operations, and to act accordingly.
“As a collective group of humanitarian, development, human rights and faith charities working for Palestinian human rights, wellbeing and dignity, we reiterate our collective call on the Government to immediately end all arms transfers to Israel to prevent their use in violations of international law.”
