Theresa May with King Salman (left) during a visit to Saudi Arabia in April Getty Images
UK not breaking law by selling arms to Saudi Arabia
Theresa May with King Salman (left) during a visit to Saudi Arabia in April Getty Images
Read the original article by BBC NEWS or read some of the key points below;
- The UK Government is not breaking the law by continuing to sign off the sale of arms to Saudi Arabia, the High Court has ruled.
- The UN claims strikes on Houthi rebels caused thousands of civilian deaths.
- The Government said defence exports would continue to be reviewed but the Campaign Against the Arms Trade said an appeal against the ruling was planned.
- Equipment sold to Saudi Arabia includes Typhoon and Tornado fighter jets, as well as precision-guided bombs
- The sales contribute to thousands of engineering jobs in the UK, and have provided billions of pounds of revenue for the British arms trade.
- Rosa Curling, of law firm Leigh Day, which represented the campaign group, said: “Nothing in the open evidence, presented by the UK government to the court, suggests this risk does not exist in relation to arms to Saudi Arabia.
- James Lynch, Amnesty International’s head of arms control and human rights, said the ruling was “deeply disappointing”.
- The judges said “closed material”, which had not been made public for national security reasons, “provides valuable additional support for the conclusion that the decisions taken by the secretary of state not to suspend or cancel arms sales to Saudi Arabia were rational”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdCM38mnsxI
