Newark man forces Department for Business and Trade to reveal how UK still allows hundreds of arms export to Israel

A Newark man has criticised the UK government for trading military goods with Israel in light of the conflict in the region.

Former export control employee Francis Towndrow submitted a Freedom of Information request to force the release of details of the extent of the UK’s relations with the Middle Eastern nation. He found that the UK government continues to authorise a range of military and dual-use exports to Israel under existing arms export licences, authorising the sale of a wide array of military-grade equipment and sensitive technology to Israel.

In September 2024, Foreign Secretary David Lammy announced the suspension of about 30 licences to Israel out of about 350, including components for fighter aircraft, parts for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, naval systems, and targeting equipment. Mr Lammy had said there was ‘a clear risk they might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation on international humanitarian law’.

The data, released to Mr Towndrow by the Department for Business and Trade, details the types of goods that are still authorised for export under the remaining licences.

This includes components for combat aircraft, military helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles, radars, targeting systems, electronic warfare equipment, and ammunition.

Also listed are military communications systems, bomb suits, body armour, guidance systems, and software used in weapons control.

The documents also show that several dual-use items—goods not designed solely for military purposes but capable of military application—are included within the authorised exports.

These include underwater telecommunications equipment, semiconductor technology, imaging cameras, and corrosion-resistant chemical manufacturing equipment. Some exports even involve materials such as enriched lithium, beryllium, toxins, and genetically modified organisms.

Under UK export control law, the government is required to refuse a licence if there is a “clear risk” that the goods might be used to commit or facilitate internal repression or serious violations of international humanitarian law.

Mr Towndrow said: “To ensure consistency across government on their interpretations of export controls, written procedures exist, not just for the technical evaluation of goods, but also to list so-called ‘friendly’ and ‘sensitive’ destinations.

“For a country considered as friendly, licensing is still required, but for sensitive destinations, decisions on whether licenses should be issued means greater scrutiny and the likelihood of refusal.”

He pointed to the ‘clear risk’ criteria and feels there is a danger of ‘an identifiable risk the intended recipient would use the proposed export against another country’.

He added: “It appears, therefore, the government is duty-bound to suspend all military and certain dual-use goods for exports to Israel, to ensure the UK is compliant with its own rules and international law, so as to be consistent.”

A response from the Foreign Office highlighted a statement made by Lincoln MP Hamish Falconer, the FCDO’s Minister for the Middle East, from June 4 where he commented that “…the arms suspensions that we have introduced are far-reaching”.

“Some reports have suggested that we have not taken far-reaching action, and that significant arms are still reaching the Israel Defence Forces, but that is simply factually not true.

“We take these issues very seriously. Our arms export licensing criteria and systems are among the toughest in the world.”

The Israeli Government has been engagement in a conflict in Gaza since 2023 — and recently launched strikes