British MP: UK Allows ‘Israel’ to Mark own Homework over War Crimes Scrutiny

By Staff, Agencies

A prominent British MP has raised concerns that the UK government is allowing “Israel” to “mark their own homework” when it comes to compliance with international humanitarian law in Gaza.

In a letter sent to Foreign Office minister Andrew Mitchell, Brendan O'Hara MP, questioned which organizations and charities have been providing evidence to the government regarding “Israel's” legal compliance.

In particular, O'Hara, the Scottish National Party's spokesperson on foreign affairs, said he was concerned that the UK "takes confidence in ‘Israel's’ compliance with IHL [international humanitarian law] based on the mere presence of lawyers embedded with the “Israeli” military.

"While internal legal scrutiny within military operations is acknowledged as important… it is essential that compliance with [international humanitarian law] is scrutinized by an accepted and impartial international body such as the UN or the ICC," he wrote.

“Allowing any conflict to the party to 'mark their own homework' risks compromising impartiality and raises significant questions about the objectivity and credibility of assessments especially when there is mounting evidence of violations.”

O'Hara's letter follows a two-hour parliamentary debate on Gaza on Tuesday, in which nearly a dozen MPs called on the government to say whether it has updated its assessment of “Israel’s” compliance, given that the UN-backed report this week found Gaza to be in a state of imminent famine.

Mitchell would not be drawn to share details, but said that the Foreign Office was “going through the necessary legal processes, which are complex” and would update MPs as soon as it was in a position to do so.

Yasmine Ahmed, UK director of Human Rights Watch, said the government could not "stand behind the general claim that ‘Israel’ complies with international law when the evidence to the contrary is mounting by the day.”

The foreign office’s assessment of “Israel’s” compliance with international humanitarian law is critical for UK arms exports to the country. The government is obligated to suspend export licenses if it determines there is a clear risk that British weapons could be used in serious violations of international humanitarian law.

“By failing to suspend the licensing of military equipment to ‘Israel’, the UK government at risk of failing to prevent genocide, and being complicit in serious violations of international law, including war crimes and crimes against humanity as well as breaking UK law,” Ahmed said.