Britain widens arms embargo on Israel

London expands the list of weapons British companies are barred from exporting to Israel, building on a partial embargo imposed in 2024.

By David Rosenberg, World Israel News

The British government has suspended or rejected more than 80 export licenses involving goods that could be used by Israeli forces in Gaza, the JC reported this week, almost three times the number affected when London first imposed restrictions on military exports to Israel in September 2024.

Around 30 licenses were initially suspended two years ago, while more than 50 subsequent applications have since been refused as Britain has maintained restrictions on goods deemed potentially usable in Israeli military operations in Gaza.

Middle East Minister Stephen Doughty said the government was continuing to assess applications individually and had further tightened its licensing policy following a package of measures announced earlier this month targeting Israeli activity in Judea and Samaria.

“We have suspended or refused over 80 licenses now. The new decisions that we took on September 8 mean there’s effectively now a double lock of arms exports,” Doughty said.

“They have to be considered both in relation to the existing conditions that we set in relation to international humanitarian law violations but also now we have to consider the unlawfulness of the occupation. So that’s a very significant step forward.”

The new policy follows the British government’s September 8 declaration that it considers Israel’s continued presence in Judea and Samaria to be unlawful, alongside plans to restrict trade connected to Israeli communities beyond the Green Line.

Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said at the time that Britain would refuse license applications for weapons and other products determined to “materially contribute to the occupation,” describing the measure as a “double lock against arms sales.”

The suspension covered components for fighter aircraft, helicopters and drones, as well as equipment used for ground targeting.

The government stopped short of imposing a blanket arms embargo, however, and excluded most components supplied through the multinational F-35 program, arguing that suspending Britain’s contribution to the international supply chain could affect the aircraft fleets of the UK and other allied countries.

Official figures subsequently showed that 29 licenses were initially suspended in September 2024, with another six later suspended or amended as additional information became available.

Doughty told Parliament earlier this month that the government had by then “suspended or refused more than 80 export licenses in relation to Gaza,” while stressing that not every British export license involving Israel covers weapons or equipment destined for the IDF.

Some licenses, he said, cover medicines, protective equipment for journalists and aid organizations, defensive systems and components intended for use by Britain’s allies.

Doughty has also said he had “personally gone through every single license” in an effort to ensure approved exports could not be used in weapons deployed in Gaza.

He pushed back against what he called “a lot of misleading information around there about licensing,” pointing out that the licensing system encompasses civilian and humanitarian products as well as military equipment.

Miliband said the restrictions would remain in place for relevant exports “as long as the occupation persists.”