Stop Arming Israel
Israel's regime of dispossession, occupation, and apartheid is sustained through routine military force against the Palestinian people.
The UK government is complicit in sustaining this system of injustice, including by facilitating the deadly trade in arms. The government regularly approves military technology and arms exports to Israel. From 2015–2020, the UK government approved over £400 million worth of military technology and arms exports to Israel. During this time Israel killed 796 Palestinians and injured over 75,000.
We campaign for the UK Government to end its material support for Israel’s militarised repression against Palestinians. This includes by implementing an immediate two-way arms embargo. This means the government would refuse to grant licenses for arms exports to Israel, and ban the import of weapons and military technology from Israel.
As well as pushing for the implementation of a two-way arms embargo, PSC is also active in targeting complicit financial institutions, and opposing arms fairs.
Read more below…
Financial Institutions
UK banks provide loans and financial services to a range of companies supplying Israel with arms and military technology, used to oppress Palestinians.
Alongside our campaign partners, Campaign Against Arms Trade and War on Want, we’ve been campaigning for HSBC to end its deadly investments.
In a major win for our movement, HSBC divested from Israeli arms company Elbit Systems, in December 2018, following months of pickets, protest, and outreach.
However, despite this, HSBC continues to maintain business relations with more than a dozen other companies selling weapons and technology to the Israeli military.
Arms Fairs
The UK’s complicity in supporting the arms trade with Israel doesn’t end with the licensing of arms. The Government also facilitates arms fairs in towns and cities across the UK. These are events where military delegations from human rights abusing states like Israel, meet with companies producing deadly weaponry.
At the fairs, exhibitors include companies producing weapons, military technology, and surveillance equipment, which is developed and used in the service of Israel’s regime of dispossession, occupation, and apartheid regularly exhibit
PSC is part of the Stop the Arms Fair coalition opposing the biennial Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) arms fair in London. Recently, we have also been part of the broad coalition opposing the AOC arms fair in Liverpool, and taken part in events opposing the Home Office’s Security & Policing fair.
Use the campaign resources below:
To go further, download, read and share:
- Briefing by PSC, War on Want, and Campaign Against Arms Trade on the UK-Israel arms trade
- War on Want’s Deadly Investments report on UK banks’ complicity in Israel’s crimes against the Palestinians
- Leaflet on the HSBC Campaign
- War on Want’s Arming Apartheid Report
Please get in touch for more information on the Stop Arming Israel campaign by emailing info@palestinecampaign.org