April 7, 2024 (EIRNS)—There is relatively “sudden” and widespread pressure across political and legal circles in the United Kingdom, since the IDF killing of seven World Central Kitchen aid workers in Gaza on April 2, for a halt to arms sales to Israel. The number of judges, jurists and legal experts who have signed an open letter to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak demanding a halt, has risen to 800. But according to a study last month by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), fully 99% of the weapons systems were exported to Israel from the United States and Germany over 2019-2023. These are the countries which must take this action to help force a ceasefire in Gaza, and open the door to the Oasis Plan of economic development across the region to bring peace.
Arms manufacturers in the United States make 69% of the military systems provided to Israel, and those in Germany provide 30%, according to the SIPRI study referenced in the April 7 Washington Post. The paper notes that U.S. military aid is largely in the form of grants under the Foreign Military Financing program, which Israel uses to buy U.S. arms and services, while Germany’s arms exports to Israel are sold, but “the German government has made export approval of German-made arms for Israel a priority.” Germany’s arms exports to Israel in 2023 rose tenfold above those of 2022, reaching $354 million.
