NGO loses bid to block UK export of F-35 components to Israel amid Gaza genocide

The High Court in London rejected a legal challenge on Monday brought by a Palestinian rights group seeking to block the UK from supplying components for Israeli F-35 fighter jets.

Israel has used the jets to devastating effect in its indiscriminate bombardment of Gaza.

Israel has committed atrocities during a conflict that has killed over 56,000 people - the vast majority of them Palestinian civilians, according to figures from the Gaza health ministry the United Nations deems reliable.

The UK government suspended some export licences for military equipment after concluding there was a risk Israel could be breaching international humanitarian law but made an exemption for some parts for Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth jets.

Rights group Al-Haq had asked the High Court for a judicial review, saying the "carve out" was unlawful and alleging the government had misunderstood the applicable rules of international law.

'Facts unchanged'

It was supported by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Oxfam and others in its case.

Amnesty said the judgement does not change the facts that what is happening in Gaza is a genocide.

"We are disappointed by today’s ruling, but the court has been clear that while it does not have the authority to make a judgment on UK exports of F-35 arms parts, this does not absolve the executive and Parliament from their responsibilities to act," Chief Executive of Amnesty International UK Sacha Deshmukh said in a statement.

"The UK has a legal obligation to help prevent and punish genocide and yet it continues to authorise the export of weapons to Israel despite the clear risks that these weapons will be used to commit genocide.

"The horrifying reality in Gaza is unfolding in full view of the world: entire families obliterated, civilians killed in so-called safe zones, hospitals reduced to rubble, and a population driven into starvation by a cruel blockade and forced displacement. These are not isolated tragedies; they are part of a systematic assault on a besieged population," the statement added.

"This judgment does not change the facts on the ground, nor does it absolve the UK government of its responsibilities under international law. The risk that UK arms may be used to facilitate serious international crimes remains alarmingly high. If the courts will not intervene, then the moral and legal burden on the Government and Parliament to act - before more lives are lost and further irreparable harm is done - is even greater.

"The UK must end all arms transfers to Israel if we are serious as a country about our commitments to international law and human rights," the statement concluded.

Judges Stephen Males and Karen Steyn rejected all of the grounds for challenging the government's decision, saying the case was really asking if the court could order the UK to "withdraw from a specific multilateral defence collaboration".

"Under our constitution that acutely sensitive and political issue is a matter for the executive, which is democratically accountable to parliament, and ultimately to the electorate, not for the courts," said the judges, denying permission for a judicial review.

Shawan Jabarin, General Director of Al-Haq, said in a statement to AFP his organisation would "continue to persevere in the UK and beyond until governments are held accountable".

A government spokesperson said the ruling showed that the UK was operating "one of the most robust export control regimes in the world".

'Shocking increase'

The UK contributes components to an international defence programme that produces and maintains the F-35s for Israel and several other countries.

Defence Secretary John Healey had argued a suspension would impact the "whole F-35 programme" and have a "profound impact on international peace and security".

In September 2024, the new Labour government announced it was suspending around 30 of 350 export licences following a review of Israel's compliance with international humanitarian law.

But the partial ban did not cover British-made F-35 parts, which include refuelling probes, laser targeting systems, tyres and ejector seats, according to Oxfam.

UK-based NGO Campaign Against Arms Trade has said that licensing figures showed the government had made a "shocking increase in military exports to Israel" in the months after the September 2024 announcement of partial suspensions.

It said the figures showed the UK approved £127.6 million ($170 million) in military equipment to Israel in single-issue licences from October to December 2024, saying this was more than for the period from 2020 to 2023 combined.

Most of the licences were for military radars, components and software, as well as targeting equipment, according to the NGO, which was involved in the case against the government.