A landmark decision by the Court of Appeal last year shed light over the ongoing dispute as to the legality of weapons sales to Saudi Arabia in light of the crisis in Yemen. The Court ruled that the UK government had failed to make appropriate assessments regarding whether violations of international law had taken place in Yemen by the Saudi-led regime before granting arms export licenses. The ruling meant that the government was forced to review licensing decisions and stop the issuing of new licenses for the sale of arms to the Saudi-coalition.
ANNOUNCEMENT BY INTERNATIONAL TRADE SECRETARY
In recent days, the International Trade Secretary Liz Truss announced that the UK government has complied with the Court’s order and will resume the sale of weapons to the Saudi regime. A government report found that there had been “no systematic pattern” of humanitarian law violations during the Saudi military campaign and these potential violations were instead, “isolated incidents.”
This decision to continue issuing export licenses comes a few days after the UK government announced new rules on sanctions for global human rights abusers. The first wave of sanctions includes 20 Saudi nationals who were involved in the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. When asked whether the inclusion of Saudi nationals in the sanctions regime would damage the UK’s relationship with the country, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab responded that it was “a matter of moral duty” and “we can’t turn a blind eye to gross violations of human rights.”
BACKLASH AGAINST THE GOVERNMENT DECISION
In response to the decision, the Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT) issued a statement highlighting the government’s “rank hypocrisy”, labelling the move “morally bankrupt”. CAAT have announced they are exploring their legal options and intend to challenge the decision.
Labour MP Emily Thornberry, Shadow Secretary of State for International Trade, notes that the timing of the decision alongside the announcement of a new sanctions regime is “at the very least a case of mixed messages, undermining the government’s claim to be human rights defenders.”
HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN YEMEN
Described by UNICEF as the “largest humanitarian crisis in the world”, the situation in Yemen is critical. Millions of citizens are on the brink of famine, and the five-year conflict has led to the deaths of at least 7,700 civilians, with 60% of these deaths attributed to the military campaign led by Saudi Arabia.
The UK’s continued backing of the military regime in Yemen is considered legally questionable, with statistics provided by CAAT showing that the UK has sold up to £5.3 billion worth of weapons to Saudi since the beginning of the conflict. Export rules in the UK state that licenses should not be granted “if there is a clear risk that weapons or equipment might be used in a serious violation of international humanitarian law.” With Liz Truss acknowledging that there have been “some credible incidents of concern”, the question remains whether the UK government is adhering to its international legal obligations or whether export rules are being interpreted to allow for state interests to come before protection of Yemeni citizens.
Christie graduated with an LLM in International Law and Security from the University of Glasgow. She focused on areas such as nuclear weapons, cyber security, counter-terrorism, and the international courts system. Most recently, she interned at the International Bar Association undertaking legal research and policy work.