'Shameful': Netanyahu condemns UK suspension of some arms exports to Israel

The government is defending its decision saying 'it won't have a material impact on Israel's security' however Benjamin Netanyahu has described it as "shameful", Debi Edward reports

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has described the UK government's decision to suspend some arms export licenses to Israel as "shameful", while charities have warned that the suspension "does not go far enough".

The government has faced backlash after making the decision over concerns the arms could be used to breach international humanitarian law.

Around 30 out of 350 arms licences have been suspended due to concerns that there is a “clear risk” they could be "used to commit or facilitate serious violations of international humanitarian law," Foreign Secretary David Lammy said on Monday.

Writing on X, Netanyahu drew comparisons between Israel's fight against Hamas and the Second World War, saying: "Just as Britain’s heroic stand against the Nazis is seen today as having been vital in defending our common civilization, so too will history judge Israel’s stand against Hamas and Iran’s axis of terror."

"With or without British arms, Israel will win this war and secure our common future," he added.

The Board of Deputies of British Jews has expressed "deep concern" with the UK government's decision, saying it sends a "dangerous message to Hamas that they can commit appalling atrocities".

The president of The Board of Deputies of British Jews Phil Rosenberg said that this was the "wrong time" to take the decision

Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis also took to social media to criticise the decision, saying it “beggars belief” when “Israel is fighting a war for its very survival on seven fronts forced upon it on October 7, and at the very moment when six hostages were murdered in cold blood".

Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said he was “deeply disheartened” and also criticised the timing of the announcement following the deaths of the hostages in Gaza. The country's Foreign Minister Israel Katz meanwhile said the decision "sends a very problematic message" to Hamas "and its backers in Iran".

Former prime minister Boris Johnson questioned Lammy and Prime Minister Keir Starmer, asking why were they “abandoning Israel” and “Do they want Hamas to win?”.

Defence Secretary John Healey has insisted that Israel’s security will not be weakened by the suspension. He said he informed his Israeli counterpart Gallant about the suspension before it was announced.

"We have a duty to follow the law, but this does not alter our unshakable commitment to support Israel’s right to self-defence and to the defence of Israel if it comes under direct attack again, just as UK jets back in April helped intercept Iranian drones and missiles that were targeted directly at Israeli civilians,” Healey told Times Radio.

Charities meanwhile have warned that the government's suspension of around 30 arms export licences to Israel "does not go far enough".

A “total ban” is the “only way to categorically ensure arms sold to Israel are not used in violations of human rights”, according to Christian Aid’s head of Middle East policy William Bell.

He added that “urgent steps” were needed to end the suffering of people in the region.

Sacha Deshmukh, Amnesty International UK’s chief executive, said the government’s action was “riddled with loopholes” including exempting the F-35 fighter jet programme.

Mr Deshmukh said the exemption represented a “catastrophically bad decision for the future of arms control”.

The list of suspended items includes important components for military aircraft, including F-16 jets and drones, as well as naval systems and targeting equipment.

Lammy added that a review conducted by the government could not “arbitrate on whether or not Israel has breached international humanitarian law” in Gaza, but ministers still have a legal duty to review export licences.

The government has said that "insufficient" humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza and reports of mistreatment against detainees were crucial factors in its decision.

Lammy said there was no choice but to halt some arms exports.

The government assessment used by Lammy to make his decision concluded that: “Israel has not fulfilled its duty as Occupying Power to ensure – to the fullest extent of the means available to it – those supplies essential to the survival of the population of Gaza."

It added there “have been credible claims of the mistreatment of detainees” at a “volume and consistency” which suggest “at least some instances of mistreatment contrary to IHL (international humanitarian law)".

The government suggested, however, that it is not possible to defiantly judge “allegations regarding Israel’s conduct of hostilities”, partly because of the “opaque and contested information environment in Gaza”.

Meanwhile a hearing in a High Court legal challenge against the government by a human rights organisation over arms exports to Israel will now no longer go ahead.

Palestinian human rights organisation Al Haq is taking legal action against the Department for Business and Trade over decisions not to suspend licences for the export of weapons and military equipment.

Mr Justice Chamberlain ruled on Tuesday that a three-day hearing scheduled for October would no longer take place after some of the licences were suspended on Monday.

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The UK's suspension announcement comes after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked for forgiveness as thousands of Israelis hit the streets in protest over the weekend following the deaths of six hostages.

Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi, and Ori Danino were found dead in a tunnel in Rafah on Saturday, the Israeli military said.

In May, a long-awaited report by the US government found Israel may have breached international humanitarian law by using US weapons in Gaza.

There have been many reports out of Gaza detailing the maltreatment of people in Gaza.

One former Israeli detention guard turned whistleblower leaked a photograph of a Palestinian prisoner forced to stand in a stressed position, and told ITV News last month that what he witnessed "made his stomach turn".

The war broke out after Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7, killing some 1,200 people and abducting around 250.

More than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel's attacks in Gaza, according to Gaza's health ministry.

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