Declassified UK : Turning Words Into Action

Anna Stavrianakis

Regular Contributor
Declassified UK

It is now the official view of the British government that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory is unlawful.

With his statement on 8 September 2026, Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband brought the UK into step with the International Court of Justice advisory opinion of July 2024.

His statement set out an ostensibly new position on arms sales: he said the UK would now refuse arms exports that “materially contribute to the occupation.”

Fine words. But history and experience behove us to be cautious and watch with sceptical scrutiny.

Just two years ago, the government said it was suspending arms exports for direct use in Gaza. But it inserted a gaping loophole: spare parts for F-35 fighter jets continue to flow to Israel via a US-controlled spare parts pool.

Here are three things to watch for as this story develops:

First, there is no mention of revoking licences that have already been granted. So presumably, the new policy only applies to new licence applications, meaning that Israel can continue using weapons they have already imported.

Second, the government has a habit of messing around with the ordinary meaning of words like “arms”. In 2012, the government described assault rifles and sniper rifles used lethally against Arab Spring protestors in the Middle East as “crowd control goods.”

And earlier this summer, Foreign Office Minister Stephen Doughty stated that “there is no evidence of UK weapons or ammunition being used in Sudan.” But it depends what you mean by “weapons and ammunition.”

Doughty seemed not to mean the engines with “Made In Great Britain” stamped on them in armoured personnel carriers that were exported from the UK to the UAE and then diverted to Sudan. UAE support for the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan is an open secret, albeit one the UK government is at pains to minimise and the UAE keen to deny.

Third, watch the government debate the meaning of “materially contribute.” I suspect this will be where much of the wriggling happens.

The government has already tied itself in knots – and misled Parliament - trying to explain why it allowed the export of parts for trainer aircraft that train the pilots that bomb Gaza, thus facilitating the genocide.

The key issue here is that the UK accepts that Israel is not committed to complying with the laws of war and that its occupation of Palestinian land is unlawful. As such, any weapons exports to Israel risk contributing to war crimes in Gaza and further enabling the occupation.

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So what would a better policy look like?

A full, two-way arms and dual-use embargo on, and a halt to all military collaboration with, Israel until it ends its occupation of Palestinian land and systems of apartheid, forced displacement and genocide of the Palestinian people.

One of the key demands from Palestinians is an end to international military collaboration with Israel.

It’s literally the least Britain could do.

Best wishes,

Anna Stavrianakis

Declassified UK
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