LONDON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 09th July, 2020) The United Kingdom's intention to recommence the granting of weapons export licenses to Saudi Arabia is "rank hypocrisy" and clear evidence of the government prioritizing profits over human rights and the lives of people in Yemen, Andrew Smith, a spokesman for Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT), told Sputnik.
On Tuesday, the UK government announced that it would restart the process of issuing additional arms export licenses to Saudi Arabia following the completion of a legal review as required by the Court of Appeal ruling last year. Back then, the court ruled to suspend new arms sales to Saudis until a review process could be concluded amid fears of implications of such exports for human rights and international humanitarian law (IHL).
"I think the government review has reached the conclusion that the government always wanted to reach. We always knew that they would seek to prioritise arms sales to Saudi Arabia over the rights and lives of people in Yemen and that's what they have done," Smith said.
In a statement on Tuesday, the UK secretary for international trade, Liz Truss, said she "assessed that there is not a clear risk that the export of arms and military equipment to Saudi Arabia might be used in the commission of a serious violation of IHL." She called "possible" breaches of IHL "isolated incidents," noting that the "government will now begin the process of clearing the backlog of licence applications for Saudi Arabia and its coalition partners that has built up since 20 June last year."
"This is a disgraceful decision. It's an immoral decision and we also don't believe there is a legal basis for it. We're currently in talks with our lawyers, [and] will be looking at all legal options to challenge this decision," Smith stated.
According to the campaigner, there is no reason to believe the situation involving Saudi forces in Yemen had improved, and breaches of international humanitarian law that may have taken place could not be considered "isolated incidents" given the sheer scale of the destruction involved.
"When the government refers to isolated incidents what they really mean is the bombing of hospitals, the bombing of schools and the bombing of homes. This war has killed over a hundred thousand people. Their lives have not been 'isolated incidents,' their lives have been taken from them in a brutal bombardment and humanitarian crisis," Smith said.
The CAAT spokesman also argued it was ironic that the UK announced that it would restart weapons exports to Saudi Arabia a day after it designated 49 individuals and organizations in Saudi Arabia, Russia, Myanmar and North Korea as part of a "ground-breaking global regime" to impose financial and travel restrictions on those believed to be "involved in serious human rights abuses."
"I think this shows the rank hypocrisy at the heart of UK foreign policy. One day the government is announcing that the government will not be looking the other way when human rights abuses are happening yet then it announces it's going to be resuming arms sales to one of the most brutal dictatorships in the world," Smith asserted.
According to Smith, the country should not build "friendships with some despots, dictatorships and human rights abusers whilst shunning others." Arming and supporting any human rights abusers should end, the campaigner argued.
