Knesset nixes bill restricting military exports to rights abusers

The Knesset on Wednesday voted 45 to 29 against a bill that would have imposed stricter licensing restrictions for Israeli arms exports on countries or non-state actors implicated in severe human rights violations.

The proposed law had been put forward by left-wing MKs Tamar Zandberg and Zehava Galon of the Opposition’s Meretz party, DefenseNews reported.

The legislation sought to give the Foreign Ministry a greater role in vetting applications to the Defense Ministry’s Export Licensing Bureau, and would have required the defense ministry to reject any requests made by known rights abusers.

Israel’s 2007 Law For Oversight of Defense Exports requires the defense ministry to consult the Foreign Ministry on all Israeli weapons sales to foreign countries for foreign policy and diplomatic considerations.

However, the proposed legislation would have increased the ministry’s role in all potential arms sales, requiring it to publish a list of countries ineligible for Israeli arms exports.

Both the Defense and Foreign ministries are opposed to the measure out of concerns of backlash from the international community over the “politicization” of the vetting process, the Hebrew-language daily Haaretz reported earlier this week.

“Revealing information concerning the policy on the defense exports of the State of Israel is contrary to the interests of Israel, and by nature has implications on the bilateral and multilateral relations with diplomatic, security and economic aspects with end-user nations,” the Foreign Ministry wrote in its objection to the bill, according to the report.

In a statement released Wednesday, Zandberg defended the legislation saying it was very similar to the US Arms Export Control Act, and claimed that Israel’s military exports were “one of the most muzzled subjects” in the country.

The statement noted that in recent years, the defense ministry approved 400,000 marketing and export licenses to 130 counties and other “additional parties.”

“Unfortunately, there are not 130 democratic countries,” the statement said. “From the UN Arms Register, it is known that over the years, Israeli defense equipment went to countries that were involved at the time in serious violations of human rights.”

Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon called the bill “unnecessary,” and said defense officials already worked closely with the Foreign Ministry to vet applications for arms sales.

He said the country’s export policies were in compliance with the UN protocols, and that Israel honored all UN Security Council imposed arms embargoes.