London,\u00a031st\u00a0July 2026\u00a0\u2013 The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) has written to the newly appointed Secretary of State for Defence, Wes Streeting,\u00a0regarding\u00a0his\u00a0previous public statements concerning Israel\u2019s conduct in Gaza and the commission of war crimes.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
After resigning as\u00a0Secretary of State for Health and Social Care in May, Streeting\u00a0publicly\u00a0stated\u00a0that he\u00a0had grounds to believe that Israel was committing war crimes in Gaza. He also expressed his\u00a0frustration that these concerns were being dismissed when raised around the Cabinet table and\u00a0stated\u00a0that the United Kingdom had both a moral and legal responsibility to respond to the horror unfolding in Gaza.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
In his new role as Defence Secretary, this now makes Streeting the first Cabinet\u00a0member\u00a0to\u00a0have\u00a0made public their view that the Israeli government has committed war crimes during the genocide in Gaza.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
ICJP\u2019s correspondence to Secretary Streeting makes clear that his recent\u00a0appointment to lead the Ministry of Defence now presents an important opportunity to translate those concerns into action, particularly given the role of the Defence Secretary who is responsible for the UK\u2019s defence relationships, military cooperation, and engagement with the international defence industry.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Despite this, one of Streeting first actions as Secretary was to attend the recent Farnborough International Airshow, which platformed\u00a0three of Israel\u2019s largest arms manufacturers \u2013 Elbit Systems, Rafael Advanced\u00a0Defense\u00a0Systems, and Israel Aerospace Industries \u2013 who\u00a0exhibited\u00a0their military and security technologies in the UK.\u00a0These companies supply arms and military equipment to the Israeli military and have been linked to Israel\u2019s military operations in the occupied Palestinian territory, which have been the subject of extensive allegations of violations of international law.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Elbit Systems\u2019 presence is particularly troubling. The company\u2019s Hermes drones have been implicated in the April 2024 attack in Gaza in which British aid workers John Chapman, James\u00a0Kirbyand James \u2018Jim\u2019 Henderson, alongside their colleagues, were killed. At the same time, footage of what appeared to be a Hermes drone was displayed prominently at Elbit\u2019s stand, alongside air-to-ground missiles.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
This is difficult to reconcile with\u00a0Streeting\u2019s\u00a0previous\u00a0assessment that\u00a0Israel was committing war crimes, and it is now reasonable to ask what\u00a0has since changed and what Streeting now intends to do as Defence Secretary.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The letter also highlights that the Government\u2019s current approach to arms exports\u00a0remains\u00a0fundamentally inadequate. While around 30 export licences were suspended, this\u00a0represented\u00a0only a small fraction of the UK\u2019s overall arms licensing relationship with Israel. Crucially, the Government\u00a0retained\u00a0the F-35 exemption, allowing the continued export of components for fighter jets used by the Israeli Air Force, including in attacks on Gaza such as the July 2024 strike on Al-Mawasi that\u00a0reportedly killed\u00a090 Palestinians.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00d3rlaith Roe, ICJP\u2019s Public Affairs and Communications Officer, said:\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore entering government, Wes Streeting said publicly that he believed there were grounds to conclude that Israel was committing war crimes in Gaza and that the UK had both a moral and legal responsibility to respond. As Defence Secretary, he\u00a0is now in a position to\u00a0act on those convictions. If those statements were sincere, they must now be reflected in government policy.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
That means ending all UK arms exports and military cooperation with Israel, including the F-35 carve-out, ensuring the UK\u2019s defence relationships comply with international law, and using his position in Cabinet to press for a response that matches the scale and gravity of the violations that have been documented. The question is no longer what he believes, but what he is prepared to do.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
ENDS\u00a0<\/p>\n
Notes for Editors:\u00a0<\/p>\n
The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians is an independent organisation of lawyers, politicians and academics who support the rights of Palestinians and aim to protect their rights through the law.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
For more information, to arrange an interview with a spokesperson, please contact the ICJP news desk at\u00a0[email\u00a0protected]<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n