GAZA (Palestine Foundation Information Center) Any transfer of weapons or ammunition to Israel that would be used in Gaza is likely to violate international humanitarian law and must cease immediately, UN experts warned on Friday.
“All states must ‘ensure respect’ for international humanitarian law by parties to an armed conflict, as required by the 1949 Geneva Conventions and customary international law,” the experts said.
“States must accordingly refrain from transferring any weapon or ammunition – or parts for them – if it is expected, given the facts or past patterns of behavior, that they would be used to violate international law.”
“Such transfers are prohibited even if the exporting state does not intend the arms to be used in violation of the law – or does not know with certainty that they would be used in such a way – as long as there is a clear risk,” they said.
The experts welcomed the decision of a Dutch appeals court on February 12, ordering the Netherlands to halt the export of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel.
The experts also welcomed the suspension of arms transfers to Israel by Belgium, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, and the Japanese company Itochu Corporation.
The experts further urged other states to immediately halt arms transfers to Israel, including export licenses and military aid. The United States and Germany are by far the largest arms exporters, and shipments have increased since October 7.
