2 October 2019

In June, Government ministers agreed to stop arms exports to Saudi Arabia of weapons that could be used in the war in Yemen, following a landmark court ruling that the sales could be in breach of international humanitarian law.

However, the international trade secretary, Liz Truss, has admitted that the UK has already breached this court order three times.

The UK's Green MEPs responded to this continued breach of the law in a joint statement:

"The UK’s involvement in the arms trade - as the second largest arms exporter in the world - is a cause for national shame. Our government is prioritising profit over people.

The fact that the UK has now breached the court order banning the sale of arms to Saudi Arabia at least three times shows the government has no regard for the rule of law at home and a callous approach towards human rights abroad. Such a breach cannot be casually dismissed as ‘accidental’ or ‘admin errors.’

Despite a commitment by ministers three months ago to stop exports of weapons to Saudi Arabia that could be used in the war in Yemen, the government has continued to supply arms or parts to the Saudi regime.

We call on the government to end its complicity in war crimes against the people of Yemen by consistently and stringently enforcing the embargo on sales of weapons to Saudi Arabia.

We further call on international trade secretary, Liz Truss, to resign. She is guilty of gross incompetence and therefore complicit in breaches of the ban on arms sales to Saudi Arabia - acts that could have led to an unknown number of deaths in Yemen. Our elected officials are not exempt from the law and must face consequences where breaches occur."

Signed by: Scott Ainslie (London), Ellie Chowns (West Midlands), Gina Dowding (North West England), Alexandra Phillips (South East England), Catherine Rowett (East of England) and Molly Scott Cato (South West England and Gibraltar).
 
Notes

The Saudi-led war in Yemen has led to the death of at least 18,000 civilians, with thousands more victims of famine and an outbreak of cholera - the worst in recorded history. According to Human Rights Watch, 14 million people in Yemen are at risk of starvation and death due to malnourishment and disease.