Belgian court bars Flemish transfers of dual-use goods to Israel in 'landmark' decision

A court in Belgium on Thursday ordered the Flemish government to block all goods that could be used by the Israeli military from being shipped to Israel.

The Brussels court ruled in favour of four NGOs who had called for a ban on the shipping of dual-use goods from Belgium to Israel.

The court said that the government must "stop all transit to Israel of defence-related products and other materials usable for military purposes for which there is no concrete assurance that they are intended solely for civilian end use", according to Politico.

Additionally, the government will be fined €50,000 if it violates the order.

The four NGOs — Vredesactie, INTAL, 11.11.11, and the Human Rights League — took the Flemish government to court after a container with tapered roller bearings was checked while passing through the port of Antwerp en route to Israeli arms firm Ashot Ashkelon.

The NGOs said that the bearings are used in the production of Merkava tanks as well as Namer armoured vehicles, both of which have been extensively used in Israel's war on Gaza.

In a notorious case in 2024, a Merkava tank is believed to have been involved in the killing of Palestinian child Hind Rajab and her family in Gaza, as well as an ambulance crew sent to rescue her.

Activist group 11.11.11 said that the ruling "recognises the Flemish government's heavy legal responsibility for facilitating military missions in a state that commits war crimes, even genocide".

In the UK, the BDS movement, which is advocating a full arms embargo on Israel, said that the decision was a "landmark ruling".

"Activists, movements, civil society organisations, workers and lawyers are sounding the alarm, unveiling state and institutional complicity in Israel's genocide and are taking meaningful action to end it," Georgia Gusciglio, European Campaigns Co-ordinator with the BDS movement, said.

"This is a testament to the key role BDS partners play in holding complicit governments accountable for their failure to honour their legal obligations under international law," she added.

Demands for an arms embargo on Israel have increased in the West amid a growing consensus by rights groups, civil society organisations and genocide scholars that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.

In the UK, Foreign Secretary David Lammy last year revoked several arms export licenses to Israel, although it has consistently defended its supply of F-35 components to Israel via a carve-out, winning a court case on the matter in June.