Ministers Accused of ‘Lying’ About Arms Exports to Israel

Paywalls? Never. We think quality reporting should be free for everyone – and our supporters make that possible. Chip in today and help build people-powered media that everyone can access.

Ministers have been accused of misleading parliament over arms exports to Israel, as research shows the UK has sent the country bullets, tanks and rocket launchers since October 2023.

Analysis of data from the Israel Tax Authority shows that UK exports to Israel include a shipment of 150,000 bullets in October 2023 and over 8,000 individual munitions since the government’s partial suspension of export licences in September 2024.

The data also shows that there have been six shipments of 299 items classified as “tanks and other armored fighting vehicles, motorised, whether or not fitted with weapons, and parts of such vehicles” and two shipments classified as “rocket launchers; flame throwers; grenade launchers; torpedo tubes and similar projectors”.

As Israel’s onslaught on Gaza continues, foreign secretary David Lammy has downplayed the scale and nature of British assistance.

In October 2024, Lammy told parliament that most UK military exports to Israel were “defensive in nature” and “not what we describe routinely as arms, because the licensing regime is about controlled equipment, which is not always arms”. In September 2024 he said: “I do not think anyone would suggest that we should not sell a helmet or goggles to one of our closest allies.”

However, the UK has exported thousands of munitions to Israel since October 2023, much of which would appear to be described as arms, according to analysis by researchers from Palestinian Youth Movement, the Progressive International and Workers for a Free Palestine. From 2023 to 2025, 13 consignments arrived at Ben Gurion Airport, while one large shipment – worth almost £125,000 – arrived at the port city of Haifa.

The data will also lead to calls for more transparency over arms exports, as Israeli customs codes do not always distinguish between civilian and military products.

The government’s ban on weapons exports to Israel controversially included an exemption for components for F-35 jets, which have been used to bomb civilians in Gaza.

Investigative website Declassified previously revealed that from October 2023 to August 2024, F-35 components were delivered from an RAF base to Israel 14 times. Analysis by researchers shows that courier shipments of a similar kind have continued since September 2024 – although it is not possible to be certain about the nature of these shipments.

The data also raises questions about the effectiveness of existing bans on exports to Israel. In September 2024, the Labour government suspended around 30 licences on the grounds that they could be used to commit violations of humanitarian law in Gaza. Several of these related to military aircraft. Nevertheless, the frequency of shipments of aircraft items from the UK to Israel has not decreased. In fact, the data shows a small increase in the number of shipments. Campaigners are calling for more transparency from the UK government in order to clarify the precise nature of the goods.

The revelations come amid ongoing scrutiny of the government’s export policy and global condemnation of the arms trade with Israel.

On Monday 12 May, the government will be in high court facing legal action challenging its weapons exports to Israel. Activists are expected to take to the streets in protest in London on Friday 9 May.

In April, protesters rallied in Tangier, Morocco, against the docking of a cargo ship owned by Danish shipping company Maersk, which was said to be carrying F-35 parts to Israel. On Tuesday activists targeted the company’s offices in Helsinki.

Commenting on the revelations in the report, Labour MP and former shadow chancellor John McDonnell said: “If parliament has been misled by the foreign secretary or any minister it is a resigning matter, and more importantly it attracts potentially a charge of complicity in war crimes.

“The government has shrouded its arms supplies to Israel in secrecy. They must finally come clean in response to this extremely concerning evidence and halt all British arms exports to Israel to ensure no British made weapons are used in Netanyahu’s new and terrifying plans to annex the Gaza Strip and ethnically cleanse the land.”

Zarah Sultana, Labour MP for Coventry South, said: “This explosive report shows the government has been lying to us about the arms it is supplying to Israel while it wages genocide in Gaza. Far from ‘helmets and goggles’, the government has been sending thousands of arms and ammunition goods and even still supplying components of the world’s most lethal fighter jets.”

A spokesperson for the Palestinian Youth Movement said: “These findings prove what we long suspected: the British government has been lying to parliament and the public in an attempt to cover up its complicity in the genocide of our people.”

The Foreign Office spokesperson said, “This Government has suspended relevant licences for the IDF that might be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of International Humanitarian Law in Gaza.”

“Of the remaining licences for Israel, the vast majority are not for the Israeli Defence Forces but are for civilian purposes or re-export, and therefore are not used in the war in Gaza. The only exemption is the F-35 programme due to its strategic role in NATO and wider implications for international peace and security. Any suggestion that the UK is licensing other weapons for use by Israel in the war in Gaza is misleading.

“The UK totally opposes an expansion of Israel’s military operations in Gaza. We urge all parties to return urgently to talks, implement the ceasefire agreement in full, secure the release of hostages taken by Hamas, and work towards a permanent peace.”