UK court rejects Palestinian NGO's case over F-35 parts to Israel

By Sam Tobin

LONDON (Reuters) -Britain's decision to allow the export of F-35 fighter jet components to Israel, despite accepting they could be used in breach of international humanitarian law in Gaza, was lawful, London's High Court ruled on Monday.

Al-Haq, a group based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, had taken legal action against Britain's Department for Business and Trade over its decision to exempt F-35 parts when it suspended some arms export licences last year.

The United Kingdom had assessed that Israel was not committed to complying with international humanitarian law in Israel's ongoing military campaign.

But Britain decided to "carve out" F-35 licences, with the government saying suspending those licences would disrupt a global programme that supplies parts for the aircraft, with a knock-on impact on international security.

Al-Haq had argued at a hearing last month that the decision was unlawful as it was in breach of Britain's obligations under international law, including the Geneva Convention, but the High Court dismissed the group's challenge.

Judges Stephen Males and Karen Steyn said the case was about whether the court could rule that Britain must withdraw from the international F-35 programme, which ministers argue is vital to British and international security.

"Under our constitution that acutely sensitive and political issue is a matter for the executive which is democratically accountable to Parliament and ultimately to the electorate, not for the courts," the judges ruled.

According to Gaza officials, Israel's bombardment has killed more than 56,000 Palestinians while displacing almost the whole population of more than 2 million and plunging the enclave into a humanitarian crisis.

Israel launched its campaign in response to the October 2023 attack in which Hamas-led fighters killed some 1,200 people and took 251 hostages.

'DIPLOMATIC CONSEQUENCES'

The court said Britain's business minister Jonathan Reynolds "reasonably concluded that there was no realistic possibility of persuading all other partner nations that F-35 exports to Israel should be suspended".

"Accordingly he was faced with the blunt choice of accepting the F-35 carve out or withdrawing from the F-35 programme and accepting all the defence and diplomatic consequences which would ensue," they added.

Al-Haq said it was disappointed with the ruling, but did not say it would seek permission to appeal. The group said its legal challenge had contributed to Britain's partial suspension of arms export licences in 2024.

A British government spokesperson said: "This (ruling) shows that the UK operates one of the most robust export control regimes in the world. We will continue to keep our defence export licensing under careful and continual review."

(Reporting by Sam Tobin; editing by William James and Aidan Lewis)