Jeremy Corbyn and the Independent Alliance of MPs have released a statement calling for the UK Labour Party government to issue a full arms embargo on Israel.
The demand came in response to the Labour government announcing it was suspending 30 out of 350 arms licenses to Israel. That’s 8.5% of licenses.
Corbyn and Co: quite the “admission” from Labour
Of the 12 independent MPs elected in the UK since 1950, almost half were elected in 2024. As well as Corbyn, Shockat Adam, Ayoub Khan, Adnan Hussain and Iqbal Mohamed all pointed out that the government has now:
finally admitted there is a clear risk of weapons being used to commit violations of international law
They continued:
It is beyond shameful that it took the lives of more than 40,000 Palestinians for this admission to be made public
The Independent Alliance called for the limited arms suspension to be the:
first step in ending all arms sales to Israel. That includes parts for F-35 fighter jets, used by the Israeli military to commit genocide in Gaza.
As the Canary has reported, the statement comes as the Danish outlet Information and NGO Danwatch document the use of F-35 fighter jets in a specific Israeli bombing that killed around 90 Palestinians and injured over 300. 15% of F-35 fighter jets are produced in the UK. The bombardment was in an area – Al-Mawasi in southern Gaza – that Israel had previously designated as a ‘safe zone’.
In June, the Department of Business and Trade revealed that Rishi Sunak’s government had approved 42 military export licenses to Israel from 7 October 2023 to 31 May 2024. Of these, five are open licenses. This means they greenlight unlimited exports of specified items under just one license.
The Independent Alliance of MPs said its call for a “total arms embargo” includes:
weaponry used by Israel in its egregious assault on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank
Israel has recently launched its largest attack on the West Bank, which is already occupies, since 2002. And Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has again been showcasing a map that erases the West Bank entirely.
The Independent Alliance’s statement concludes with a demand for an:
end to the illegal occupation and settlement policy and the immediate and unconditional recognition of the state of Palestine
Labour’s manifesto pledged to recognise Palestine. But a party source later walked that back saying that UK recognition of Palestinian statehood was a “process” that should be done in “co-ordination with allies”.
With Ireland, Norway, and Spain formally recognising Palestine in May, 146 out of 193 UN member states now uphold Palestinian self-determination in the form of a nation.
More MPs join the call to stop arms to Israel
Keir Starmer suspended Labour MPs Aspana Begum and Zarah Sultana for voting to end the two child benefit cap. Sitting currently as independents, they joined calls for a full arms embargo.
Begum challenged David Lammy in parliament:
End ALL arms sales to Israel now. pic.twitter.com/6CAp2H7tIj
— Apsana Begum MP (@ApsanaBegumMP) September 2, 2024
Meanwhile, Sultana made the call on the BBC:
When Israel is carrying out a genocidal assault on Gaza, we need to ban ALL arms licences to Israel, not just a small fraction of licences. pic.twitter.com/043Nn8rh4W
— Zarah Sultana MP (@zarahsultana) September 3, 2024
Featured image via Guardian News – YouTube and Middle East Eye – YouTube
