The United Kingdom’s new Labour government has reportedly caused outrage by implementing a “secret arms embargo” on Israel, according to a Friday exclusive by The Daily Mail.
The Mail reported that civil servants had paused applications for new weapons export licenses pending UK Foreign Minister David Lammy’s review of whether war crimes were carried out during the offensive against Hamas.
According to the exclusive, Lammy will not announce a decision until later this summer, a months-long delay.
The pause in licensing also prevents military radios and body armor from being sent out.
“It means any new license requests are put into Room 101 indefinitely,” an anonymous source told the Mail. “For years, the Labour Left have sought to halt all arms exports to Israel, and now they have the levers of power, it seems it’s the first thing they have done.”
Condemning the pause in arms trade
Shadow Foreign Secretary Andrew Mitchell told the Mail that the move was “bizarre” in light of Iran’s recent threats against Israel and escalations on Israel’s northern border.
“Our close ally Israel is under direct threat from Hezbollah, who murdered 12 children in a missile attack last weekend. Just recently, British arms and military personnel were deployed to protect Israel from a direct assault by Iran,” Mitchell continued.
Col. Richard Kemp, former commander of UK forces in Afghanistan, described the move as a “secret arms embargo” and slammed the government for its decision.
“‘It is disgraceful Labour have said they’re doing one thing, reviewing the situation, and at the same time imposing what is effectively an arms embargo on Israel,” Kemp said.