Labour approves selling even more arms to Israel

JVL Introduction

In September 2024, the UK Labour government marginally reduced the arms licences for Israel; given all that has happened since, while humanitarians have called out for action such as sanctions rather than (at most) tutting from the government we might have expected further restrictions. But no, between October and December 2024  the UK Labour approved more weapons to Israel in three months than Tories did in four years. 

We note the reaction of the Chief Rabbi who said at the time. “It beggars belief that the British government, a close strategic ally of Israel, has announced a partial suspension of arms licences, at a time when Israel is fighting a war for its very survival on seven fronts forced upon it on the 7th October….As Israel faces down the threat of Iran and its proxies, not just to its own people, but to all of us in the democratic west; this announcement feeds the falsehood that Israel is in breach of International Humanitarian Law, when in fact it is going to extraordinary lengths to uphold it.”

Now more licences have been granted with the weakest of defences.

LL

This article was originally published by Middle East Monitor on Fri 8 May 2026. Read the original here.