Why we’re challenging the UK government’s continued arms sales to Israel

Oxfam GB does not take legal action lightly, but we felt compelled to intervene in the case being brought by Palestinian human rights group Al-Haq and the UK-based Global Legal Action Network challenging the UK government's continued arms sales to Israel. The case, which also has Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch as interveners, is being heard in the High Court this week.

Emotions are, of course, running high over Gaza and, given that the case is likely to attract media attention, I think as well to make clear at the outset what it is about and what it is not about.

First, what it is not about: Oxfam is a humanitarian organisation, not a political one. Its founding principles require it to safeguard the lives of all people, irrespective of nationality, faith or politics. We are not departing from our founding mandate of the prevention and relief of poverty and the promotion of human rights. We are upholding it.

This case is about the law and will focus on the government’s decision to continue to allow the sale of parts for F-35 fighter jets to Israel, despite the Foreign Secretary David Lammy concluding that there is a clear risk that any military item exported from the United Kingdom might be used by Israel to commit or facilitate a serious violation of international humanitarian law in Gaza.

The UK has obligations under domestic and international law to stop issuing licences for arms sales if there is a clear risk that the arms might be used in such cases.

As a humanitarian organisation operating in Gaza, Oxfam applied to provide evidence and make legal submissions in this case, and we are grateful to the High Court for granting us permission to do so.

The case begins on today – and over next few days we will be providing detailed information on the widespread destruction of water, sanitation and health infrastructure; evidence of attacks on humanitarian aid workers; and restrictions on vital humanitarian aid delivery.

We have seen that Israeli military attacks have systematically destroyed vital water and sanitation infrastructure in Gaza. Almost 1,700 kilometres of water and sanitation networks have been destroyed, along with all wastewater treatment plants and 70 per cent of sewage pumping stations. Some parts of the territory have lost all of their water production capacity, with the majority of wells being destroyed.

Even wars have laws, and it is widely accepted that Israel is breaching them. Our colleagues and partners on the ground have seen first-hand how starvation is being used as a weapon of war against civilians, and how the government of Israel has weaponised water.

It is shameful that Gaza now holds the record of being the deadliest place on earth for humanitarian workers.

And, naturally, all those who work for the Oxfam family around the world have extremely strong feelings about Gaza, as we have lost our own in this ongoing carnage.

Two of our partners involved in providing life-saving care were killed by Israeli air strikes on Jabalia. More than 400 aid workers and over 1,300 health workers have been reported killed in Gaza since October 2023, despite the requirement under international humanitarian law for humanitarian workers to be protected.

The recent killing of 15 Palestinian paramedics and rescue workers, whose bodies were found buried in a mass grave, triggered global outrage, but many violations and attacks go unreported.

And so, we believe that the British government is aiding and abetting war crimes with the ongoing sale of parts for the F-35 fighter jets.

Oxfam believes that the UK government needs to respect and uphold international law, and immediately stop all current and new arms licences while Israel keeps committing serious violations of international law.

There are those who talk resignedly about how the old rules-based order is coming to an end, but we cannot stand by and allow that to happen.

The rule of law should be cherished in these islands and, if history has taught us anything, it is that – in the words of Martin Luther King – if we allow injustice anywhere, we threaten it everywhere.

Dr Halima Begum is the CEO of Oxfam GB