UK civil servant warns of war crimes complicity in resignation over Israel arms exports

UK civil servant warns of war crimes complicity in resignation over Israel arms exports
The UK has granted arms export licenses worth £574 million ($727 million) to Israel since 2008. (File/Reuters)
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Updated 19 August 2024
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UK civil servant warns of war crimes complicity in resignation over Israel arms exports

UK civil servant warns of war crimes complicity in resignation over Israel arms exports
  • Foreign Office staffer has seen ‘clear and unquestionable examples’ of war crimes in Gaza
  • ‘Senior members of the Israeli government and military have expressed open genocidal intent’

LONDON: The UK government “may be complicit in war crimes,” according to a Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office official who has resigned over arms sales to Israel.

Mark Smith, who was based at the British Embassy in Dublin and worked on both arms export licenses and counterterrorism measures, told colleagues in an email seen by the BBC that he had raised concerns “at every level” in the FCDO but received only basic acknowledgments over his queries.

In the email, sent to hundreds of government officials, Smith said “each day” he and others involved in Middle East arms export licensing assessments were seeing “clear and unquestionable examples” of war crimes committed in Gaza by Israeli forces, and there was “no justification for the UK’s continued arms sales to Israel.”

Smith described himself as “a subject matter expert in the domain of arms sales policy” after “a long career in the diplomatic service,” adding: “As a fully cleared officer raising serious concerns of illegality in this Department, to be disregarded in this way is deeply troubling. It is my duty as a public servant to raise this.”

He wrote: “Senior members of the Israeli government and military have expressed open genocidal intent, Israeli soldiers take videos deliberately burning, destroying and looting civilian property.”

Smith added: “Whole streets and universities have been demolished, humanitarian aid is being blocked and civilians are regularly left with no safe quarter to flee to. Red Crescent ambulances have been attacked, schools and hospitals are regularly targeted. These are War Crimes.”

The email continued: “Ministers claim that the UK has one of the most ‘robust and transparent’ arms export licensing regimes in the world, however this is the opposite of the truth.”

The UK has granted arms export licenses worth £574 million ($727 million) to Israel since 2008, according to the Campaign Against Arms Trade. The government recently said this was “relatively small,” worth just £42 million in 2022.

The licenses were placed under review by Foreign Secretary David Lammy “on day one in office,” according to the FCDO, after the Labour Party took power in the UK general election on July 4.

The BBC reported that dissent among British, US and EU officials over potential war crimes and breaches of international law by Israel had reached “unprecedented levels” since last October, but that resignations such as Smith’s remained “extremely rare for the British government.”

In May, the International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor applied for arrest warrants to be issued for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over allegations of war crimes.

The FCDO declined to comment on Smith’s resignation. “This government is committed to upholding international law. We have made clear that we will not export items if they might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violations of International Humanitarian Law,” a spokesperson said in a statement.

“There is an ongoing review process to assess whether Israel is complying with International Humanitarian Law, which the Foreign Secretary initiated on day one in office. We will provide an update as soon as that review process has been completed.”


Harris heads to the US-Mexico border to face down criticism of her record

Harris heads to the US-Mexico border to face down criticism of her record
Updated 53 sec ago
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Harris heads to the US-Mexico border to face down criticism of her record

Harris heads to the US-Mexico border to face down criticism of her record
  • Ahead of Harris’ visit, Trump predicted that the vice president would try to make her record look better but he said “it’s not possible”
PHOENIX: Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday will make her first visit to the US-Mexico border since becoming the Democratic presidential nominee to confront head-on one of her biggest vulnerabilities ahead of the November election.
She is scheduled to appear in Douglas, Arizona, as former President Donald Trump and his fellow Republicans pound Harris relentlessly over the Biden administration’s record on migration and fault the vice president for spending little time visiting the border during her time in the White House.
Immigration and border security are top issues in Arizona, the only battleground state that borders Mexico and one that contended with a record influx of asylum seekers last year. Trump has an edge with voters on migration, and Harris has gone on offense to improve her standing on the issue and defuse a key line of political attack for Trump.
In nearly every campaign speech she gives, Harris recounts how a sweeping bipartisan package aiming to overhaul the federal immigration system collapsed in Congress earlier this year after Trump urged top Republicans to oppose it.
“The American people deserve a president who cares more about border security than playing political games,” Harris plans to say, according to an excerpt of her remarks previewed by her campaign.
After the immigration legislation stalled, the Biden administration announced rules that bar migrants from being granted asylum when US officials deem that the southern border is overwhelmed. Since then, arrests for illegal border crossings have fallen.
Harris will also use her trip to remind voters about her work as attorney general of California in confronting crime along the border. During an August rally in Glendale, outside Phoenix, she talked about helping to prosecute drug- and people-smuggling gangs that operated transnationally and at the border.
“I prosecuted them in case after case, and I won,” Harris said then.
Florida Democratic Rep. Maxwell Frost, at 27 the youngest member of Congress and a leading advocate for Harris with young and Hispanic voters, said that in backing stricter enforcement, Harris is trying to “strike a chord” and “she understands that, right now, there is a crisis at the border. It’s a humanitarian crisis.”
“That’s why she’s pushing for more resources at the border so that we have an orderly process, which is really important,” Frost said. “But, the thing is, that’s where Donald Trump stops, is just at enforcement.”
The vice president’s trip to Douglas thrusts the issue of immigration into the brightest spotlight yet less than six weeks before Election Day.
Trump didn’t wait for her to arrive there before pushing back.
On Thursday, he delivered a lengthy diatribe from New York, declaring that “anything she says tomorrow, you know is a fraud because she was the worst in history at protecting our country. So she’ll try and make herself look a little bit better. But it’s not possible.”
A day earlier, at a rally in North Carolina, Trump told voters that “when Kamala speaks about the border, her credibility is less than zero.”
The Trump campaign has also countered with its own TV ads deriding the vice president as a failed “border czar.”
“Under Harris, over 10 million illegally here,” said one spot. However, estimates on how many people have entered the country illegally since the start of the Biden administration in 2021 vary widely.
Harris also never held the position of border czar. Instead, her assignment was to tackle the “root causes” of migration from three Central American nations — El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras — that were responsible for a significant share of border crossers.
The vice president took a long-term approach to an immediate problem, helping persuade multinational corporations and Latin American businesses to invest in the region. That, she argued, would create jobs and give locals more reasons to stay home rather than take the arduous trek north.
Still, Trump has continued to decry an “invasion” of border crossers.
Polls show that most American trust him to handle immigration more than they do Harris.
Douglas, where Harris will appear, is an overwhelmingly Democratic border town in GOP-dominated Cochise County, where the Republicans on the board of supervisors are facing criminal charges for refusing to certify the 2022 election results. Trump was in the area last month, using a remote stretch of border wall and a pile of steel beams to draw a contrast between himself and Harris on border security.
The town of 16,000 people has strong ties to its much larger neighbor, Agua Prieta, Mexico, and a busy port of entry that’s slated for a long-sought upgrade. Many locals are as concerned with making legal border crossings more efficient as they are with combatting illegal ones.

Veteran Ishiba to become Prime Minister after being elected as President of Japan’s ruling party

Veteran Ishiba to become Prime Minister after being elected as President of Japan’s ruling party
Updated 15 min 27 sec ago
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Veteran Ishiba to become Prime Minister after being elected as President of Japan’s ruling party

Veteran Ishiba to become Prime Minister after being elected as President of Japan’s ruling party
  • Earlier, the two frontrunners had defeated seven other candidates to set up the final showdown

TOKYO: ISHIBA Shigeru, a veteran politician who has tried to become Prime Minister of Japan on several occasions, succeeded at the fifth attempt on Friday as he was elected President of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.

Ishiba, 67, won a runoff with TAKAICHI Sanae, a conservative who was vying to become Japan’s first female leader, picking up 215 votes to 194.

Earlier, the two frontrunners had defeated seven other candidates to set up the final showdown.

“I will do my utmost to believe in the people, to speak the truth with courage and sincerity, and to make this country a safe and secure place where everyone can live with a smile on their face once again,” he said in a short speech.

Ishiba, a former defense minister with an unusually blunt attitude for a Japanese politician, is seen as more progressive than Takichi, a close ally of former Prime Minister ABE Shinzo.

The election took place after Prime Minister KISHIDA Fumio decided to step down following a finance scandal within the party that undermined his leadership.

Ishiba previously held the powerful post of Secretary-General of the LDP as well as the agriculture portfolio. He was supported in his bid to become a politician by controversial former Prime Minister TANAKA Kakuei, who stepped down after the Lockheed Scandal. Ishiba became an MP at the young age of 29, representing the district of Tottori, where his father had been governor.

As Defense Minister, Ishiba was regarded as a “hawk,” but has taken progressive stances on other issues, such as allowing a female to become Emperor. He has also suggested that Japan might need to carry out a preemptive strike against North Korea and hasn’t ruled out Japan pursuing the development of nuclear weapons.


UN urges tighter control on arms to Haiti as death toll mounts

UN urges tighter control on arms to Haiti as death toll mounts
Updated 33 min 20 sec ago
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UN urges tighter control on arms to Haiti as death toll mounts

UN urges tighter control on arms to Haiti as death toll mounts
  • At least 3,451 people have been killed since January, according to a report from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

NEW YORK: Haiti has seen nearly 13 people killed on average each day this year, according to data from a United Nations report on Friday, which urged tighter controls on arms trafficking among other measures as a gang war drives a worsening humanitarian crisis.
At least 3,451 people have been killed since January, according to a report from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights published days before a UN mandate for a security force to support Haitian police is set to expire.
“No more lives should be lost to this senseless criminality,” commissioner Volker Turk said in a statement.
Haiti initially requested the mission in 2022 and it was approved a year ago, but just a fraction of the troops promised by a handful of nations has deployed and funding remains scant. Haiti has asked the UN to consider turning it into a formal peacekeeping mission to secure stable funds and capacity.
Turk said it was clear the mission needs “adequate and sufficient equipment and personnel to counter the criminal gangs effectively and sustainably, and stop them spreading further and wreaking havoc on people’s lives.”
The mission’s first deployment in June prompted gangs to recruit large numbers of children into their ranks, the report said. In addition, close to 100 children have been killed so far this year — some in gang attacks and other in police operations, the report said.
Violence has spread beyond the capital, fueled by arms trafficking, primarily from the United States but also from the Dominican Republic and Jamaica, which has persisted despite an international arms embargo.
The report said poorly monitored airspaces, coastlines and porous borders were allowing gangs to obtain high-caliber weapons, drones, boats and “a seemingly endless supply of bullets.”
The number of people internally displaced by the violence has almost doubled in the last six months to over 700,000, while some 1.6 million people are estimated to be facing emergency food insecurity, the worst level before famine.


One-third of British Muslims avoid discussing faith post-riots: Survey

One-third of British Muslims avoid discussing faith post-riots: Survey
Updated 44 min 7 sec ago
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One-third of British Muslims avoid discussing faith post-riots: Survey

One-third of British Muslims avoid discussing faith post-riots: Survey
  • Number has increased since far-right riots broke out nationwide in July
  • ‘People in leadership positions should be more understanding of British-Muslim concerns,’ expert tells Arab News

London: Around a third of British Muslims avoid discussing their faith, a new study has shown, with fewer prepared to talk about Islam since far-right riots broke out across the UK in July, leading to what one expert calls a “sense of nervousness” in parts of the country’s Muslim community.

In a study published by the Institute for the Impact of Faith in Life, 34 percent of 2,835 Muslims surveyed on Aug. 30 and Sept. 1 agreed with the statement “I have avoided telling people about my faith in the last four weeks,” marking a 10 percent increase from the previous month.

Sixty percent also felt that the British media portray some religions “more negatively than others,” while 41 percent felt that all religions were painted in a bad light by the press in the past month.

In addition, 47 percent of respondents said they believed there should be more religion covered by the media in the UK.

Dr. Jake Scott, director of IIFL, said in a statement: “These statistics point to a desire amongst British Muslims to see a more balanced discussion on religion in the UK media, as well as more representation for Islam in that discussion.

“Following the riots and disturbances of the summer, it is clear that Muslims in Britain feel less safe and secure sharing their faith with others, whilst a majority see the media as playing a role in spreading a negative perception of faith, both in general and in particular.”

Chris Doyle, director of the Council for Arab-British Understanding, told Arab News that British Muslims had experienced similar trends in the aftermath of major terrorist incidents including 9/11 and the 2005 London bombings.

Many felt “in some ways intimidated … because of a belief that many in the British population didn’t really understand Islam, didn’t understand or empathize in any way with British Muslims, and were collectively blaming them for the crimes of others,” he said.

“I think that what we see now with the dreadful, horrible, far-right riots this summer is a return to a sense of nervousness in the British-Muslim community.

“We’ve seen a lot of Islamophobia, a lot of anti-Muslim sentiment. We’ve had senior British politicians indulging in that, including, and in particular I’m afraid, within the Conservative Party where Islamophobia is a real problem, including among leadership candidates in the current election.

“I think this is really the backdrop as to why British Muslims are perhaps feeling somewhat nervous.”

Doyle said there is a perception that media coverage of religion in the UK is increasingly influenced by secularism, which has led to the ignoring or “belittling” of people of faith.

“British Muslims do feel that there’s an Islamophobic climate. We know also, of course, the British-Jewish community is very nervous at the increase in antisemitism, anti-Jewish sentiment and hate crimes as well.

“So all of this does go into a bigger picture, and I think it’s something that those in public life, those in the media, those in politics need to … take careful note of.”

Doyle was skeptical, however, that an increase in religious coverage in the British media, or greater public knowledge of Islam, would dampen xenophobic sentiments generally.

“I think a lot of it is caught up in an anti-immigrant, nativist approach,” he said. “Many go for British Muslims, but actually this is merely code for British Asians or British Arabs — anybody who isn’t white Anglo-Saxon.

“So I think a lot of it is actually not so much to do with the religion itself, though some of it no doubt is, but actually antagonism to the other, to people who aren’t part of what the far right would like to see as native British people, native British culture.

“I think this is far more what’s at stake here. So I think you could get more religion in the media. I don’t think it would address that.”

In order to reverse the trend of British Muslims feeling that they cannot discuss their religion, or feel that they are targets of the media, Doyle said: “It requires people in leadership positions in public life — in politics, media — to be more understanding of British-Muslim concerns, not to buy into that narrative of the far right that somehow British Muslims aren’t properly British.”

He added: “It’s also important that we ensure that British Muslims are able to access all areas of British public life.

“I think there’s been a lot of positive moves in that direction — we have a Muslim mayor of London and so forth. We’ve had British Muslims in the Cabinet.

“Such moves, where qualified people are able to get the highest offices regardless of their background, identity and faith, I think that’s absolutely vital.”


Philippines says to evacuate thousands from Lebanon if Israel invades

Philippines says to evacuate thousands from Lebanon if Israel invades
Updated 27 September 2024
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Philippines says to evacuate thousands from Lebanon if Israel invades

Philippines says to evacuate thousands from Lebanon if Israel invades
  • Israeli bombing of Iran-backed Hezbollah strongholds around neighboring Lebanon has killed hundreds of people this week, while the militant group has retaliated with rocket barrages

MANILA: The Philippines said on Friday it will evacuate 11,000 citizens from Lebanon the moment Israeli forces cross the border to launch a ground offensive against Hezbollah.
Israeli bombing of Iran-backed Hezbollah strongholds around neighboring Lebanon has killed hundreds of people this week, while the militant group has retaliated with rocket barrages.
Israel has rejected a US-backed 21-day ceasefire call, and its military chief has told soldiers to prepare for a possible ground offensive.
“A ground invasion will lead to mandatory repatriation,” Foreign Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega said at a press conference in Manila, adding the plan was to move thousands out of the country via the sea.
He did not provide other details.
Manila had earlier urged Filipinos to leave Lebanon before airlines stopped flying to Beirut but most of its citizens did not heed the call, Filipino diplomats said.
Millions of Filipinos work overseas — with large numbers concentrated in the Middle East — due to limited job opportunities at home. Around 90 percent of those working in Lebanon are women migrant domestic workers.
“To some of them, getting killed in war is preferable to starving to death,” de Vega said, adding there have so far been no Filipino casualties from the Israeli air campaign against Hezbollah.
After Israel’s war with Hamas erupted last year following the Palestinian militant group’s October 7 attack, Manila began voluntary repatriations of its citizens from the areas affected by the fighting.
The conflict has since spilled into Lebanon, with Israel’s ongoing bombardments in the country raising fears of an all-out regional war in the Middle East.
So far, only 500 Filipinos have taken up the government’s offer to leave Lebanon, De Vega said.
Filipino ambassador to Beirut Raymond Balatbat said 196 Filipinos have fled southern Lebanon, where the Israeli campaign has been concentrated.
Most Filipinos working in the country are based in central Lebanon around Beirut, he added.
Anthony Mandap, consul-general at the Philippine embassy in Tel Aviv, said there are no plans as of now to repatriate some 30,000 Filipinos working in Israel.