Spain halts arms export licences to Israel following Gaza war outbreak

Spain halted all arms export licences to Israel following the outbreak of the Gaza war, Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares has said.

Albares told Al Jazeera that the outbreak of war on 7 October "made us realise the importance of a fair and lasting solution" to the Palestinian cause.

He urged all parties to abide by the directives of the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

The court in January found that Israel was plausibly breaching the Genocide Convention in Gaza. It ordered that Israel abide by a list of provisional measures ahead of its final ruling in the case brought by South Africa, which could take years.

The measures include telling Israel to take "immediate and effective measures to enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance to address the adverse conditions of life faced by Palestinians".

Israel is waging a devastating war against the strip, where it has so far killed over 27,700 people.

Authorities in one of Belgium's three regions have also temporarily halted two gunpowder export licences to Israel.

The Wallonia government pointed to concerns over the gunpowder's intended destination, Belga News Agency reported.

The media organisation said official documents showed Israeli forces were not the ultimate destination of the ammunition, which was meant for European Union nations like Belgium, and the US.

Belga reported that this complies with regional law, but the government still decided to halt the licenses.

Government minister Christophe Collignon said the ICJ's rulings gave rise to the move by Wallonia.