The High Court has ruled that it is lawful for the UK to continue supplying parts for the F-35 fighter jet to Israel, rejecting a case brought by a pro-Palestine NGO.
Al-Haq, a West Bank-based human rights group, claimed that the decision by the government to “carve out” an exception for the trade when it suspended some arms licences last year violated Britain’s obligations under international law.
The Foreign Office confirmed in September that it would suspend 30 licences after determining that there was a “clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of international humanitarian law”.
But it stated that this would not apply to the F-35 programme, which is centrally administered by the US but partially supplied by British manufacturers.
The decision prompted outrage among pro-Palestinian groups, which claimed that the jets were used by the IDF to commit war crimes – something which Israel has consistently denied.
The government, though, argued that withdrawing its participation from the scheme would disrupt global supply chains and would mean that it failed to comply with treaty obligations to its allies, since Israel is not the only country to receive F-35s.
Such a decision would “undermine US confidence in the UK and Nato”, argued the Ministry of Defence.
Delivering the decision, Lord Justice Males and Mrs Justice Steyn ruled that the question of the propriety of the continued supply of F-35 parts was one for Parliament rather than the courts.
In a 72-page opinion, they wrote: “[At] issue is whether it is open to the court to rule that the UK must withdraw from a specific multilateral defence collaboration which is reasonably regarded by the responsible ministers as vital to the defence of the UK and to international peace and security, because of the prospect that some UK-manufactured components will or may ultimately be supplied to Israel, and may be used in the commission of a serious violation of international humanitarian law in the conflict in Gaza.
“Under our constitution that acutely sensitive and political issue is a matter for the executive which is democratically accountable to parliament and ultimately to the electorate, not for the courts.”
They also appeared to accept that requiring the F-35s’ main manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, not to use British parts in any aircraft destined for Israel was not practical.
Neither Al-Haq nor the Global Legal Action Network, with which it brought the case, have confirmed whether they plan to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court.
