Foreign Office official resigns after UK refuses to ban arms exports to Israel | Arms Trade

A British Foreign Office official has resigned after refusing to impose a ban on arms exports to Israel, citing concerns that it violated international law.

Mark Smith, counter-terrorism officer at the British embassy in Dublin, said he had made numerous internal complaints, including through formal complaint mechanisms, but received only perfunctory responses.

Smith previously worked for the government assessing arms export licenses to the Middle East, and said his colleagues witnessed daily clear and unmistakable war crimes and violations of international humanitarian law committed by Israel in Gaza.

Senior Israeli government and military officials have openly declared their intent to commit mass murder, and Israeli soldiers have been filmed deliberately burning, destroying, and looting civilian property, he wrote. More than half of Gaza’s homes and more than 80 percent of Gaza’s commercial real estate have been damaged or destroyed.

Entire streets and universities have been destroyed, humanitarian aid has been cut off, and civilians have been left with no safe haven. Red Crescent ambulances have been attacked, and schools and hospitals have been regularly targeted. These are war crimes.

He said there was no justification for Britain to sell arms to Israel, but somehow the sales continued.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said it could not comment on individual cases but the government was committed to complying with international law.

The Labour government has promised to review its policy on arms sales to Israel, but no decision has been made so far.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy said defensive arms sales could continue but that the flow of offensive weapons used in Gaza could be blocked. He said it was a complex legal process.

Mr Smith said he was sadly resigning after a long career at the Foreign Office, and that the only response he received to his complaint was: “Thank you, we have heard your concerns.”

He said it was deeply concerning for a senior executive to be ignored in this way, and that many other senior colleagues had also expressed their concerns.

The resignation email was sent to a wide audience, including hundreds of government officials, embassy staff and special advisers to the foreign minister.

According to the emails, Smith's role was as second secretary, responsible for counter-terrorism, and while he was said to be a relatively low-ranking official, he described himself as an expert on arms sales policy after a long career in the Foreign Office.

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He wrote: Ministers claim that the UK has one of the strongest and most transparent arms export licensing systems in the world, but this is simply the opposite. As a fully authorised civil servant raising serious concerns about illegality in this department, it is deeply worrying to be ignored in this way. It is my duty as a civil servant to raise these concerns.

Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on the Palestinian territories, praised Smith's move as courageous and said she hoped more diplomats would join him.

Britain is facing a judicial review of its arms sales policy, which will focus on whether the Foreign Office acted wrongly in failing to ban the sales.

Israel insists it was an act of self-defense and is doing its best to distinguish between civilians and Hamas targets in Gaza.

The war began on October 7 last year when Hamas-led militants crossed the border and killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapped 250 to Gaza. Israel claims, without evidence, that it has killed more than 17,000 Hamas militants. The Gaza Health Ministry said at least 40,074 Palestinians were killed, but did not distinguish between combatants and civilians.

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