UK Government rejects SNP calls to halt arms sales to Israel as not a 'wise path'

David Cameron on tour in Uzbekistan. Credit: Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire

The SNP has written to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak seeking clarity on the future of UK arms sales to Israel

Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron says banning UK arms sales to Israel is not a “wise path” and could “strengthen Hamas”.

This comes as the SNP writes to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for clarity on UK arms sales on Israel, accusing him and the foreign secretary of making contradictory statements.

Lord Cameron also says it would be wrong for Israel to carry out an offensive in Rafah “without a plan to protect people” and said the UK Government will not be deploying British troops to Gaza.

At prime minister’s questions last week, SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said the UK should halt arms sales to Israel, after US President Joe Biden said he would be withholding weapons. 

In response, Mr Sunak said the UK Government “doesn’t itself directly provide, or ship, arms to Israel”. 

The SNP says Lord Cameron however has claimed the UK does have a number of licences with Israel.

In his letter to the Prime Minister, Brendan O’Hara MP, the party’s foreign affairs spokesman, said: “I am concerned that the slew of contradictory answers from you and your senior ministers suggests that you are deliberately trying to evade the question, or you are unclear on the arms trade process.

“Regardless, these comments were misleading and raise serious concerns as to whether the UK Government is taking its responsibilities and obligations under the arms trade treaty seriously.

“Given the 35,000 innocent civilians now killed at the hands of the Israeli forces, and the UK’s strongest ally acknowledging that they no longer can provide the means to make this assault possible, I would like to ask again if your government will immediately suspend the licences that it grants to provide arms to Israel, and if not, why not?”

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has previously called for UK arms sales to Israel to be halted as he believes Israel has clearly broken humanitarian law.

However Lord Cameron says the UK Government will not be halting arms sales, as this could “strengthen Hamas”.

He told Sky News: “I think America and the UK are in a totally different situation.

“The United States is a massive, bulk, state supplier of weapons to Israel, including 1,000lb bombs and all the rest of it.

“The UK provides less than one per cent of Israel’s weapons and it's not a state supplier.

“We have a licensing system and those licences can be closed if it’s judged there’s a serious risk of a serious international human rights violation.”

However he also says the UK Government doesn’t support an Israeli offensive in Rafah “without a plan to protect people”.

Lord Cameron said: “For there to be a major offensive in Rafah, there would have to be an absolutely clear plan about how you save lives, how you move people out of the way, how you make sure they’re fed, you make sure that they have medicine and shelter and everything.

“We have not seen such a plan - so we don’t support an offensive in that way.”

He added he is “always pushing” the Israelis on a hostage deal and achieving a pause in fighting, but added the real pressure should be on Hamas.

Lord Cameron also told BBC Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg that deploying British troops to Gaza is a “risk that we shouldn’t take”.

He said: “We are playing a very full part in this.

“The view the Prime Minister took, and I took and others took, was actually putting British boots onto the beach was not a good move.

“It’s not necessary - there are other people that can do it.”

The foreign secretary added the UK will not resume funding to the UN relief agency UNRWA until investigations are complete into whether its workers colluded with Hamas.