I, Arslan Iqbal, along with all the signatories of this petition appeal to you to act and begin legal proceedings against the UK government with immediate effect to stop the sales of weapons to Israel. 

In the past few weeks during Israel’s most recent military operations in the occupied lands of Palestine, namely besieged Gaza, over 230 Palestinians were killed - a quarter of them children; 96 children at the last count and more continue to succumb to their injuries daily due to 9 hospitals being destroyed by continuous bombing. Thousands more have been injured and over 90,000 people displaced. The ceasefire in Gaza is welcomed, but does not address the core issues of Israeli occupation and the denial of Palestinian rights. Nor does it address the issue of UK complicity in selling weapons to Israel that are then used in these violations of international law.  
 

Although a ceasefire was finally agreed by Israel, the war crimes continue with systematic arrests of any protestors, children trying to go to what is left of their schools; night raids on sleeping families and illegal evictions of families to take possession of their properties for migrant settlers. In addition to that, worshippers are being stopped from praying at mosques, including the Al Aqsa compound mosques. Again, this is in direct violations of international law and human rights law.  

Article 9: Freedom of thought, conscience, and religion 

1. Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief, in worship, teaching practice and observance. 

2. Freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs shall be subject only to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of public safety, for the protection of public order, health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others. 

 
Since 2015, the UK government has approved over £400 million worth of military technology and arms exports to Israel. Israel uses this in Gaza, the West Bank and inside Israel to maintain a system of oppression against Palestinians that leading analysts – including Human Rights Watch and distinguished Israeli organisation B’Tselem – have declared to meet the legal criteria of apartheid. Over the last few weeks, hundreds of thousands of people have protested across the UK about Israel’s ongoing flouting of international law. The UK must play a leading role in upholding international law and ensuring accountability. 

According to figures from the Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT), the UK arms to Israel export was valued at £119 million between 2013 & 2016. This has been considerably higher in most recent years.  This is without counting the numerous Israeli arms companies operating within the UK to manufacture new weapons systems that are then available to Israel.  Undoubtedly, an unfair advantage to a state that is both illegally occupying the land that these weapons are ultimately turned against and ethnically cleansing the indigenous Palestinian population of that land by different means, including that of ongoing forceful removal.

These weapons have caused over 39,512 injuries and 2,623 deaths of Palestinians in the last 3 years. They have also permitted the systematic oppression of the Palestinians in their use by the Israeli military and police forces, who use these weapons violently towards Palestinians at checkpoints, on illegal house raids and within the prison system.  

 
Israel has a military court for Palestinian children:  

Israel established the world's first and only juvenile military court in operation in the world in September 2009. By the end of August 2016, 319 Palestinian minors were held in Israeli prisons as security detainees and prisoners, including 10 administrative detainees, according to rights organisation B'Tselem. 
 
Children can be sentenced up to 10 years of jail time: For children aged 12-13, a maximum six-month sentence was established. For those aged 14-15, the sentence reaches up to one year. The law says that if the offence involves throwing stones at persons or property with the intent to harm, it carries a maximum penalty of as much as 10 years of jail time. This law does not apply to Israeli children. 
 

Hundreds of Palestinian children are facing cruel punishment in detention: According to Defence for Children International, 429 West Bank children were detained between 2012 and 2015 and endured some form of physical violence following arrest. 
 

Many children are not provided with basic rights: In only 3% of all cases, Palestinian children had their parents present during interrogation or access to legal counsel. In 84% of the cases, children were not informed of their rights. 
 
Almost a million Palestinian children have been affected by the blockade of Gaza: According to UNICEF, one in every four children in Gaza needs protection and psycho-social support.

Overall, 911,000 Palestinian children are still affected by the prolonged conflict and occupation. Chronic power deficits disrupt basic services, including education, health, nutrition and water, sanitation, and hygiene. 

I plead with you along with my signatories of this petition to begin the investigation as soon as humanly possible to stop any further death, suffering and human rights violations. We ask this is fulfilled by stopping the sales of weapons by the UK to Israel, along with the operation of Israeli weapons companies in the UK, who are developing weapons to be battle tested on innocent Palestinian civilians.