The Guardian newspaper confirmed that more than 200 organizations around the world called on countries involved in the production of F-35 fighter jets to “immediately halt all arms transfers to Israel,” amid concerns that they are failing to prevent the aircraft from being used in violation of international law.
The letter, signed by 232 civil society organizations, was sent to ministers in Australia, Canada, Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the United States and the United Kingdom as the war in Gaza reached its 500th day.
Among the sponsors are prominent charities and non-governmental organizations, such as Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and Oxfam.
The letter, coordinated by the Campaign Against Arms Trade, stated: “The past 15 months have shown in stark terms that Israel is not committed to complying with international law. The partners in the F-35 program have failed, individually and collectively, to prevent the aircraft from being used to commit serious violations of international law by Israel.”
“States were either unwilling to comply with their international legal obligations and/or claimed that the structure of the F-35 program meant that arms controls could not be applied to any end user, rendering the entire program incompatible with international law,” It added.
