Are European countries still supplying arms to Israel?

French President Emmanuel Macron has joined calls to halt the sale of arms to Israel.

Transcript

00:00Are European governments still supplying arms to Israel?

00:09French President Emmanuel Macron has joined calls for an arms embargo on Israel as it

00:14expands its war in the Middle East.

00:17If we call for a ceasefire, the coherence is not to provide weapons of war. And I think

00:21that those who provide it cannot call for a ceasefire on our side every day and continue

00:25to disprovision it.

00:26Since the October 7th attacks, several European governments including Spain, Italy, Belgium

00:32and the Netherlands have either banned or restricted the sale of military equipment

00:37and weapons to Israel for fear of complicity in war crimes in the Gaza Strip.

00:43EU countries are legally obliged to ensure the arms they export are not used in attacks

00:48against civilians.

00:50But in the four years before the October 7th attacks, the US accounted for 69% and Germany

00:57for 30% of Israel's arms imports. Italy, which has already suspended exports, accounted

01:04for the majority of the remaining 1%.

01:08It means Germany is the only European government with the real leverage to make a dent in Israel's

01:13arms imports.

01:15Now the government in Berlin categorically denies that it has stopped supplying arms

01:19to Israel since October 7th. But the data shows us that exports have plunged from the

01:26value of 326.5 million euros in 2023 to just 14.5 million euros in the first eight months

01:36or so of 2024.

01:39The slowdown in arms sales is believed to be partly due to legal challenges, such as

01:44Nicaragua's case against Germany before the International Court of Justice, which calls

01:49for a halt to Berlin's military supplies to Israel.