Andy Burnham said sorry. He didn’t stop the weapons.

Britain’s new prime minister built his early image on contrition. In July, before he even reached Downing Street, he called Gaza’s suffering “a scar on our collective conscience.” He admitted Labor “didn’t get it right.” He promised more pressure on Israel. Palestinian advocates in Britain welcomed the words, cautiously. Adnan Hmidan, Chair of the Palestinian Forum in Britain, called Burnham’s recognition important. Then he added the caveat that mattered. “The scale of devastation, killing, starvation and forced displacement inflicted upon Gaza demands far more than acknowledgment,” he said. “It requires courageous political action.”

Nine weeks into Burnham’s premiership, the arms keep moving.

A Loophole Built to Last

In September 2024, Britain suspended roughly 30 of its 350 arms export licenses to Israel. The government cited a “clear risk” that British weapons could facilitate violations of international humanitarian law in Gaza. It sounded decisive. It wasn’t.

The suspension carved out one exception: components for the F-35 fighter jet. Britain manufactures around 15 percent of every F-35 produced worldwide. Rather than block that pipeline, the government let British-made parts keep flowing through the global F-35 supply chain, even as some of those parts reached Israeli jets flying over Gaza.

Researchers found no drop in aircraft-component shipments after the suspension took effect. Shipments rose instead.

Researchers found no drop in aircraft-component shipments after the suspension........

© Middle East Monitor