More than 200 international organizations have called on the countries that produce the F-35 fighter jets to immediately suspend all arms deliveries to Israel, due to concerns about the use of these jets in violation of international law. A letter, signed by 232 civil society organizations, was sent on Monday to ministers of countries involved in the production of the F-35s, such as Australia, Canada, Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the United States and the United Kingdom, to mark the 500th day of the Gaza conflict.
The letter highlights that the past months have demonstrated Israel’s failure to comply with international law, and that the F-35 partner countries have failed to prevent the use of these aircraft to commit serious violations of this law. It also criticizes the governments’ failure to act to uphold their international legal obligations, as well as their justification that the structure of the F-35 program makes it impossible to control weapons intended for end users, thus rendering the program incompatible with international law.
The F-35s are produced by an international consortium led by Lockheed Martin. The Gaza conflict has claimed more than 48 lives, with estimates suggesting that the figure could be up to 000% higher. Thousands have been displaced, and much of the infrastructure has been destroyed by Israeli bombing. Despite the gravity of the situation, the letter points out that governments continue to supply weapons to Israel through the F-40 program.
Katie Fallon, head of an anti-gun organization, denounced the F-35 program as a symbol of Western complicity in Israel's crimes. She recalled that these planes were used for 466 days to bomb Gaza, in actions that were described as war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. She added that, even after the temporary ceasefire, the US government continued to support threats of ethnic cleansing and forced displacement in Gaza, claiming that this program tacitly endorses the continuation of these crimes.
