France’s ban on Israeli arms firms at exhibit a sign of the times
A court upheld France’s decision to ban Israeli companies from participating in the Eurosatory arms and defence industry exhibition, one of the world’s largest.
The decision by France’s defence ministry was made after Israel ignored international warnings not to invade Gaza’s southern Rafah city, where 1.5 million Palestinians were sheltering from attacks.
Emmanuel Dupuy, from the Institute for European Perspective & Security Studies, says the move is more symbolic than anything else. But he noted that countries such as Canada have banned military exports to Israel because of public pressure and fears of being associated with alleged war crimes in Gaza.
“In Europe, there is a mindset to put pressure on Israel since its offensive in Rafah, and most likely its future offensive when it comes to southern Lebanon,” Dupuy told Al Jazeera.
Seventy-four Israeli firms were set to attend the Eurosatory event from June 17 to 21 at fairgrounds close to Paris’s main international airport.
A display at the Eurosatory arms show in Villepinte, north of Paris, France on Monday, June 17
Just sad that these 'killer' exhibits exist at all.
UK approval of arms exports to Israel plunged at start of Gaza war
Britain’s approval of arms export licences to Israel dropped sharply after the start of the war on Gaza, with the value of permits granted for the sale of military equipment to its ally falling by more than 95 percent.
The figures, which have not previously been reported, are based on information provided by government officials to Reuters new agency and data from the Department for Business and Trade’s Export Control Joint Unit.
Unlike the United States, Britain’s government doesn’t give arms directly to Israel but rather issues licences for companies to sell weapons, with input from lawyers on whether they comply with international law.
Members of Britain’s Parliament and human rights groups have criticised the government for the lack of public information about arms sales to Israel since the start of the conflict. Some countries such as Italy, Canada and the Netherlands have imposed restrictions on arms exports to Israel because of concerns about how the weapons could be used.
The United States and Germany increased arms sales to Israel after the start of the war with Hamas.
