UK Refuses to Ban Arms Exports to Israel – Podcast | News

British diplomat Mark Smith resigned from the Foreign Office on Friday over the UK government’s arms sales to Israel, saying it “may be complicit in war crimes”.

In his resignation email, he said: “Whole streets and universities have been destroyed, humanitarian aid is blocked and civilians regularly have nowhere to run. Red Crescent ambulances have been attacked, schools and hospitals are regularly attacked. These are war crimes.”

The Labour government has launched a review of its arms policy but has not yet made any decisions. Smith’s resignation has increased pressure on the government to justify its refusal to ban arms exports to Israel.

“This is the first time we have heard of discord in the Foreign Office,” said the Guardian’s foreign policy editor, Patrick Wintoursays Lucy Hough“He says he has raised the issue internally, including through formal mechanisms and in a letter to the current foreign secretary, and has largely received responses along the lines of ‘we note your concerns’ and nothing more.”

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) told the Guardian the government was committed to respecting international law. Israel denies committing war crimes and says it is acting in self-defence.

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