British arms sales to Saudi Arabia should be suspended until there is an independent inquiry into possible Saudi war crimes in Yemen. That was the verdict in mid-September of two parliamentary select committees (business and international development). The British government has licenced over £3bn-worth of arms exports to Saudi Arabia since the conflict began.
Later in September, it emerged that Britain had stopped the EU setting up an independent international inquiry into the Yemen war.
In August, Oxfam said the Britain had gone from being an ‘enthusiastic backer’ of the Arms Trade Treaty to ‘one of the most significant violators’.
The Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) judicial review of the arms sales will take place in January (see PN 2596–2597 for background).
Topics: Arms trade