Agenda item

Agenda item

Notice of Motion - Ban of arms sales to Israel

For almost a year, the residents of Manchester have come together weekly in solidarity and protest on the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Many of them contacting their local councillors and other elected representatives to take action calling for a ceasefire and to end sales of arms to Israel.

 

The level of distress, anxiety, and trauma caused by witnessing the destruction and suffering in Palestine has taken a toll on many communities in our city. We have seen rising rates of Islamophobia and anti-Semitism across our city as a result of this crisis. As a council, we have a responsibility to listen to the voices of our residents and to put pressure on our government to end this genocide and work towards a lasting peace.

 

This Council also notes:

 

·            The  cross-party statement we issued on November 29, 2023, which condemned the attack by Hamas on 7 October and called for an immediate ceasefire, the return of hostages, unrestricted access for humanitarian aid, and the upholding of international law.

·            Since October 7, according to the Gaza health ministry, the present Israeli Government has?killed over 41,000 Palestinians, 16,000 of which are children, with over 90,000?wounded,?and?10,000 feared buried under the rubble?in Gaza.

·            The UN Secretary-General,?Amnesty International,?Human Rights Watch,?and others have stated that Israel has committed grave violations of international law in its assault on Palestine.?The International Court of Justice?has ruled that there was a risk of irreparable harm to the Palestinian right to be protected from genocide.

·            Numerous UN Special Rapporteurs?have warned?that any transfer of weapons or ammunition to Israel is likely to violate international humanitarian law and must cease immediately.

·            In 2009, under a Labour government,?the UK suspended arms licenses for naval guns due to their use against civilians in Gaza. In 2014, under a Conservative-led government, the UK?said it would suspend licenses?if hostilities resumed in Gaza.

·            Since 2015, the UK has licensed?at least?£474 million?worth of military exports to Israel, including components for combat aircraft, missiles, tanks, technology, small arms, and ammunition.

·            On 8 May 2024,?President Biden confirmed that the US had blocked an arms?shipment of thousands of heavy bombs to Israel over fears that they could be used during Israel’s military operation in Rafah.

·            The Labour government has  confirmed their latest restrictions  applied to 30 export licences, only a fraction of our 350 arms export licences to Israel.

·            By providing arms and military support to Israel, the?UK Government could be complicit in this catastrophe and a breach of international law

 

This Council calls on the  government to:

 

(1)      Immediately revoke all licenses for arms exports to Israel and suspend arms sales to Israel.

(2)      Continue to press for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, Israel, and the rest of Palestine, the immediate return of hostages, and to make every effort to resume the peace process.

(3)      Work to ensure that international humanitarian law is upheld and that civilians are protected in accordance with those laws.

(4)      Work to ensure that civilians have access to humanitarian support, including unrestricted access to medical supplies, food, fuel, and water.

 

In addition, this Council will:

 

(5)      Urge all councillors to press their political parties and leaders to demand an end to arms sales to Israel.

(6)      Continue to condemn all forms of Islamophobia and anti-Semitism and work to champion a city free from hate, including in the city’s work as a City of Sanctuary.

 

Proposed by Councillor Abdullatif, seconded by Councillor Wiest, supported by Councillors Johnson, Leech, Northwood, Nunney and Sarwar

Minutes:

Councillor Abdullatif submitted the following motion, which was seconded by Councillor Wiest:-

 

For almost a year, the residents of Manchester have come together weekly in solidarity and protest on the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Many of them contacting their local councillors and other elected representatives to take action calling for a ceasefire and to end sales of arms to Israel.

 

The level of distress, anxiety, and trauma caused by witnessing the destruction and suffering in Palestine has taken a toll on many communities in our city. We have seen rising rates of Islamophobia and anti-Semitism across our city as a result of this crisis. As a council, we have a responsibility to listen to the voices of our residents and to put pressure on our government to end this genocide and work towards a lasting peace.

 

This Council also notes:

 

The cross-party statement we issued on November 29, 2023, which condemned the attack by Hamas on 7 October and called for an immediate ceasefire, the return of hostages, unrestricted access for humanitarian aid, and the upholding of international law.

Since October 7, according to the Gaza health ministry, the present Israeli Government has?killed over 41,000 Palestinians, 16,000 of which are children, with over 90,000?wounded,?and?10,000 feared buried under the rubble?in Gaza.

 

The UN Secretary-General,?Amnesty International,?Human Rights Watch,?and others have stated that Israel has committed grave violations of international law in its assault on Palestine.?The International Court of Justice?has ruled that there was a risk of irreparable harm to the Palestinian right to be protected from genocide.

 

Numerous UN Special Rapporteurs?have warned?that any transfer of weapons or ammunition to Israel is likely to violate international humanitarian law and must cease immediately.

 

In 2009, under a Labour government,?the UK suspended arms licenses for naval guns due to their use against civilians in Gaza. In 2014, under a Conservative-led government, the UK?said it would suspend licenses?if hostilities resumed in Gaza.

 

Since 2015, the UK has licensed?at least?£474 million?worth of military exports to Israel, including components for combat aircraft, missiles, tanks, technology, small arms, and ammunition.

 

On 8 May 2024,?President Biden confirmed that the US had blocked an arms?shipment of thousands of heavy bombs to Israel over fears that they could be used during Israel’s military operation in Rafah.

The Labour government has confirmed their latest restrictions applied to 30 export licences, only a fraction of our 350 arms export licences to Israel.

 

By providing arms and military support to Israel, the?UK Government could be complicit in this catastrophe and a breach of international law

 

This Council calls on the government to:

 

Immediately revoke all licenses for arms exports to Israel and suspend arms sales to Israel.

 

Continue to press for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, Israel, and the rest of Palestine, the immediate return of hostages, and to make every effort to resume the peace process.

 

Work to ensure that international humanitarian law is upheld and that civilians are protected in accordance with those laws.

 

Work to ensure that civilians have access to humanitarian support, including unrestricted access to medical supplies, food, fuel, and water.

 

In addition, this Council will:

 

Urge all councillors to press their political parties and leaders to demand an end to arms sales to Israel.

 

Continue to condemn all forms of Islamophobia and anti-Semitism and work to champion a city free from hate, including in the city’s work as a City of Sanctuary.

 

The Lord Mayor reported that an amendment had been submitted by Councillor Ilyas and had been seconded by Councillor Chohan.

 

The amended motion was as follows:

 

The level of distress, anxiety, and trauma caused by witnessing the destruction and suffering in the Middle East has taken a toll on many communities in our city. We are concerned about escalating violence in the region. We have seen rising rates of anti-Muslim hatred and anti-Semitism across our city as a result of this crisis. As a council, we understand the feelings of our residents and urge our government to work towards an end to these hostilities and towards a lasting peace.

This Council also notes:

  • The cross-party statement we issued on November 29, 2023, which condemned the attack by Hamas on 7 October and called for an immediate ceasefire, the return of hostages, unrestricted access for humanitarian aid, and the upholding of international law.
  • Since October 7, according to the Gaza health ministry, the present Israeli  offensive has killed over 41,000 Palestinians, 16,000 of which are children, with over 90,000 wounded, and 10,000 feared buried under the  rubble in Gaza. In recent days, the death toll has started to increase in Lebanon too.
    We welcome the UK Labour Government’s decision to restore UK funding to UNRWA after the last Conservative government had suspended it, and to provide £5m in new funding for UK-MED field hospitals in Gaza and £6 million for UNICEF’s work to support families bereaved in this conflict. Protecting civilian life must be a priority.
  • The UN Secretary-General, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and others have stated that Israel has committed grave violations of international law in its assault on 
  • Gaza.
  • In 2009, under a Labour government, the UK suspended arms licenses for naval guns due to their use against civilians in Gaza. In 2014, under a Conservative-led government, the UK said it would suspend licenses if hostilities resumed in Gaza.
  • Since 2015, the UK has  licensed at least 474 million pounds worth of military exports to Israel, including components for combat aircraft, missiles, tanks, technology, small arms, and ammunition.
  • - Since the  General Election, the new Labour Government have committed to upholding International Law. On day one in office, the Foreign Secretary commissioned a thorough review into Israel’s compliance with International Humanitarian Law, given the grave concerns about the conduct and consequences of the war in  Gaza for civilians.
  • Following the review, the Government has concluded that there is a clear risk that items may be used to commit or facilitate violations of International Humanitarian Law and has suspended export licences 
  • For those items that could be used in the current conflict, the Government have suspended 30 out of a total of approximately 350 licenses in total. These include equipment that have been assessed for use in the current conflict in Gaza such as components for military aircraft and drones, as well as items which facilitate ground targeting. The remaining export licences have been assessed by the Government as not for military use in the current conflict.

This Council calls on the government to:

(1)      Abide fully with international law. We support the action taken by the new Government to review arms exports and to suspend sales that could be used to breach international law. We urge a thorough assessment of all the remaining licenses and if any are found to run that risk, for those to also be suspended immediately.

(2)      Continue to press for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, Israel, the West Bank and Lebanon, the immediate return of hostages, and to make every effort to resume the peace process.

(3)      Work to ensure that international humanitarian law is upheld and that civilians are protected in accordance with those laws.

(4)      Work to ensure that civilians have access to humanitarian support, including unrestricted access to medical supplies, food, fuel, and water.

(5)      Play its diplomatic role to create the conditions for a peaceful two-state solution, with a safe and secure Israel alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state.

In addition, this Council will:

(6)Urge all councillors to press their political parties and leaders to demand that all arms sales- to 

      Israel and all other nations- abides by International law

(7)      Continue to condemn all forms of Islamophobia and anti-Semitism and work to champion a city free from hate, including in the city’s work as a City of Sanctuary.

(8)      Set out plans to address the rise in Islamophobia and antisemitism in Manchester, developing specific local initiatives to promote understanding and cohesion, including community dialogues.

 

The amendment was then put to vote and the Lord Mayor declared that it was carried.  Subsequently the amendment became the substantive motion and on being put to the Council to vote, the Lord Mayor declared it was carried.

 

Resolution

 

This Council:-

 

This Council calls on the government to:

1 Abide fully with international law. We support the action taken by the new Government to review arms exports and to suspend sales that could be used to breach international law. We urge a thorough assessment of all the remaining licenses and if any are found to run that risk, for those to also be suspended immediately.

 

2 Continue to press for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, Israel, the West Bank and Lebanon, the immediate return of hostages, and to make every effort to resume the peace process.

 

3 Work to ensure that international humanitarian law is upheld and that civilians are protected in accordance with those laws.

4 Work to ensure that civilians have access to humanitarian support, including unrestricted access to medical supplies, food, fuel, and water.

5 Play its diplomatic role to create the conditions for a peaceful two-state solution, with a safe and secure Israel alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state.

In addition, this Council will:

6 Urge all councillors to press their political parties and leaders to demand that all arms sales to Israel and all other nations- abides by international law

7 Continue to condemn all forms of Islamophobia and anti-Semitism and work to champion a city free from hate, including in the city’s work as a City of Sanctuary.

8 Set out plans to address the rise in Islamophobia and antisemitism in Manchester, developing specific local initiatives to promote understanding and cohesion, including community dialogues.

 

(Councillor Wheeler declared a disclosable pecuniary interest in the item and left the meeting and took no part in the consideration or vote.)