SDLP Leader Colum Eastwood MP has urged the new government in London to implement a ban on arms and weapon component sales to Israel while the genocide in Gaza continues.

The Foyle MP asked the Department for Business and Trade to review the policy of licensing arms exports to Israel following the decision of the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to seek arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and senior administration officials.

Mr Eastwood welcomed the reinstatement of UK funding for UNRWA this month as a pivotal first step in delivering more support to people in Gaza whose communities and lives have been devastated over the last year.

Colum Eastwood MP said:

“There is no moral justification for the continued export of arms and weapons components to Israel. We know that they’re being used to perpetuate a genocide because we can see it unfolding every day.

“If the scenes of destruction aren’t enough then the decision of the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to seek arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior administration officials should have been the moment to put this practice to an end.

“I welcome the decision to drop the UK challenge to the ICC arrest warrant for Netanyahu. And I welcome the reinstatement of funding for UNRWA as the best way to get urgent aid to people in Gaza. But further international action is needed - the tools of genocide cannot be provided to those who have proven so eager to use them.

“SDLP MPs alongside others have been pressing for this intervention from the start. What we now need is an immediate ceasefire, the return of all hostages and a two-state solution based on the recognition of the state of Palestine."