The UK is “confident” in its position to continue licensing the export of spare parts that could end up in Israeli F-35 fighter jets even as Israel has halted aid and electricity entering Gaza, the UK’s Middle East minister Hamish Falconer said Tuesday.
In September, the Labour government suspended around 30 arms export licences to Israel after a review found that UK-made weapons might be used in the violation of international humanitarian law in Gaza.
One key factor was the review’s conclusion that Israel had not fulfilled its duty as an occupying power to ensure that supplies essential the survival of the population in Gaza.
Falconer told parliament’s foreign affairs committee that, as a result of the assessment, weapons that could be used by Israel offensively had been restricted.
However, a specific carve-out was made for F-35 spare parts exported indirectly to Israel because it was “in the interest of international peace and security”, he said.
“We could not suspend those licences without impairing the overall F-35 supply chain which would have significant far-reaching ramifications given the importance of F-35s right across our allies and, indeed, in our own region in Europe,” Falconer said.
Read more: UK ‘confident’ in F-35 exports to Israel even as aid into Gaza halted
