Is the UK selling arms to Israel?

UK Foreign Minister David Lami condemned Israel’s behavior in Gaza and said that Britain could “exert more effort in the coming weeks” if the Israeli government does not change how to follow the war in the tape.

He expressed their anger that “the international community was unable to bring this war to some extent” and said it was “ill” due to the killing of Palestinians in the first aid centers by the Israeli forces in recent days.

Since Israel began its military campaign in Gaza after the October 7 attacks, a great public attention focused on the issue of assistance provided by the United Kingdom. Many of the weapons used in the strikes of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) were built on the tape or sold by Western countries.

But information about the extent of military support in the United Kingdom of Israel often remains unclear or classified, and some deputies have called for a general investigation of the extent of assistance.

The United Kingdom is not one of the main suppliers of weapons in Israel. The United States is the largest seller – Israel helps to develop one of the world’s most armies – followed by Germany and Italy.

Since 2015, the UK has approved the licenses of weapons export to Israel for more than 500 million pounds (676.4 million dollars) – according to the peak in 2018 Campaign against the CAAT CAAT.

However, a lot of attention has focused on the United Kingdom’s support for Israel on the parts made in Britain of the F-35 plane. A multi -role fighter, was widely used by Israel to strike Gaza.

The UK provides between 13 to 15 % of the ingredients used in aircraft, including the launcher seats, back plane, active intersection systems, laser targeting and weapons cables.

After the Labor Party arrived in power last year, 30 out of 350 weapons export licenses, which affects equipment such as combat spare parts, helicopters and drones.

Any British company who wants to sell weapons abroad must apply for a license, and the government said at the time that there are “clear risks” that the equipment can be used to commit serious violations of international law.

But decisively, the F-35 parts were not included in the export ban. The government said it could not prevent Israel from obtaining these components as it is sent to manufacturing centers abroad as part of a global program – and not directly to Israel.

Professor Anna Stavrianakis, an expert in the export of weapons in the United Kingdom, described the government’s decision to allow this exemption as a “huge loophole.”

The UK’s export ban said: “The UK’s manufacturer for F-35 is mostly going to the United States of America, where they are combined into the aircraft heading to Israel,” noting that since the White House “does not want to stop supporting Israel”, the export ban in the United Kingdom was completely limited to its effectiveness.

The UK also participated in the development of the Hermes drone, which was widely used in Gaza. While the British version of the plane, called WatchKeper 450, is unarmed, the Hermes drone of Israeli manufacture is armed with Spike missiles and stated that it was used in the attack that killed seven workers in the central kitchen in the world last year.

It is difficult to say what the UK still comes to Israel under active licenses. Foreign Minister David Lami said last year that the ban was not “a comprehensive embargo or an arms embargo” and said it was still necessary for Israel to defend the attack.

According to the Ministry of Business and Trade, 161 of the existing licenses is related to military products.

A UK parliament report said that the remaining licenses can include “elements such as trainers and marine equipment, and the double -use materials for civil use in communications and data equipment.”

The extent of the United Kingdom has participated in intelligence with Israel since October 7. The government has a “defensive partnership with Israel”, which defense officials have long been said, including “education, joint training and capacity development.”

The Royal Air Force (RAF) has transported hundreds of monitoring flights across Gaza since December 2023, And according to what was reported using Spy Shadow R1 aircraft Its headquarters at the RAF base in Akrotiri in the nearby Cyprus.

In an interview on Monday, Lammy insisted that the British Royal Air Force flights across Gaza did not lead to the participation of any military intelligence with the Israeli Defense Army.

“It will be wrong to help the British government to sue this war in Gaza,” the Foreign Minister said. “We don’t do it.”

In 2023, the United Kingdom recognized that some “unarmed” aircraft revolving around the tape were helping to search for the Israeli hostages taken by Hamas during the October 7 attacks. There are still 50 people held by Hamas, where 20 are believed to be alive.

The Minister of the Armed Forces, Luke Pollard, reaffirmed this position in April 2025, and the deputies told that the drone in the United Kingdom via Gaza was conducted with the “only purpose of determining the hostage.”

The defense Ministry (MD) refused to comment on whether Israeli aircraft could reach the British Royal Air Force base in Cyprus. But the BBC also investigated the Israeli Air Force aircraft in the United Kingdom over the past year after reports in the drop of the independent port. Many fuel aircraft have appeared on specialized flight tracking sites on the rules of the British Royal Air Force at Bize Norton and Fairford.

“It is usual practices to routinely allow requests for limited numbers of allies and partners to reach the UK air bases,” the BBC spokesman told the BBC.

“We cannot comment on or provide information related to the movements or operations of military aircraft to foreign countries,” a spokesman added.

The UK often runs training courses for armies in allied countries, many of which focus on driving, logistics and electronic operations. For example, thousands of Ukrainian forces came to Britain since Russia launched a large -scale invasion in 2022 for basic training.

“Less than 10” employees of the Israeli Defense Army have been trained in non -combat military academic courses in the United Kingdom every year since 2020.

He refused to say exactly the number of Israeli Defense Forces that participated in courses during that time, or what chapters they took “in order to protect personal information.” But the ministers insisted that the courses emphasize the importance of compliance with international humanitarian law.

In June, the Minister of Armed Forces, Luke Pollard, confirmed that a limited number of Israeli defense employees were participating in UK -based training courses, but he refused to provide more details.

The UK’s approach to the Israeli campaign has changed its responsibility for its campaign in Gaza after the general elections in 2024. The new Labor Party government brought down the government to arrest the arrest of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense president Jaff Galet by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Since then, it has become more hiding in its criticism of Israeli leaders, and has joined 27 other countries this week in condemning “inhuman killing of civilians” looking for food and water in Gaza.

The Labor Party government hung talks on the upgrade of the Free Trade Agreement with Israel in May, with Lami describing the Israeli treatment of the Palestinians “an insult to the values of the British people.”

However, while the government has imposed on two Israeli -right Israeli ministers due to the “incitement of violence” in the occupied West Bank, it has not imposed any sanctions on Israel directly because of its actions in Gaza, which killed at least 59,029 people, according to the Hamas Ministry of Health.