Netherlands’ Supreme Court Orders Government to Review Jet Parts Export to Israel
The Netherlands’ Supreme Court on Friday ordered the government to review its policies on arms exports to Israel, according to Reuters.
The court did not approve a lower court’s ban on exporting F-35 fighter jet parts in 2024.
However, it ruled that the government must evaluate whether the components are being used in a way that violates the international law.
Notably, the government will have six weeks to complete the review, during which exports of F-35 parts will remain suspended.
Moreover, the review of the export license should look up for any possible violations of international law.
“As long as the minister does not make a new decision on the export licence, the current licence remains valid and export of F-35 parts to Israel is not allowed,” presiding judge Martijn Polak said.
Last year, the Court of Appeal in The Hague urged the government to stop exporting jet parts and claimed that Israel’s F-35 fighter jets might be used to commit serious violations of international humanitarian law in Gaza.
“If the minister determines that there is a clear risk that the goods to be exported will be used in committing serious violations of international humanitarian law, he may no longer allow the use of the license,” the court said.
In July, the Dutch government imposed travel bans on two far-right Israeli cabinet ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich.
It accused them of repeatedly inciting violence against Palestinians and urging for an “ethnic cleansing” of the Gaza strip.
The government also supported the European Union’s recommendation to curb Israeli access to its flagship research funding program.
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