May 15 Early in the morning, the cargo ship Borkum arrived at the port of Cartagena, Spain. Even at this early hour, Palestinian protesters were present at the port with their country’s flag. They requested the authorities to inspect the ship before anchoring at the port. Because they had solid information that there were weapons on this ship. Those that will go to Israel will be used in the Gaza war.
The matter came to the attention of a left-wing member of the European Parliament. He sent a letter to the Spanish President Pedro Sánchez requesting that the ship not be allowed to enter the port.
However, the ship left the port of Cartagena and anchored at the port of Koper in Slovenia before the Spanish government could decide on the matter. The spokesperson of the radical left-wing Sumer Party said on social media X that the suspicion is strong about this issue.
According to documents seen by Al Jazeera, explosives and weapons were loaded onto the ship from India. It left Chennai in southeast India on 2 April. The ship was on its way to the Israeli port of Ashdod, 30 kilometers from Gaza, via South Africa due to fears of an attack by Yemen’s Houthis on ships plying in the Red Sea.
It is known that the ship had 20 tons of rocket engine, 12.5 tons of rockets with explosive charges, 1500 kg of explosives and 33 thousand kg of rockets. There was also 740 kg of propellant for the cannon.
Then on May 21, another cargo ship was not allowed to anchor in Cartagena port. Spanish newspaper El Pais reported that the Marian Danica was carrying 27 tons of explosives. The ship departed from Chennai port and was bound for Haifa port in Israel.
These incidents further prove that weapons were going to Israel from India. And these weapons are being used to kill innocent Palestinian people in Gaza.
Jain Hussain, a researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), said that India has had good relations with Israel for several years. So it is not at all surprising that India is sending arms to Israel.
‘Made in India’
On June 6, the Israeli army bombed a UN-run shelter in the Nuseirat refugee camp in Gaza. Quds News Network then released a video of the attack. A nameplate was affixed to the wreckage of a missile fired from an Israeli warplane. It was clearly written ‘Made in India’.
Indian company Premier Explosives Limited manufactures such medium and long-range missiles. In a conference on March 31, the company’s executive director T Chowdhury admitted the supply of weapons to Israel during the Gaza war.
However, Premier Explosives did not say anything when Al Jazeera asked about it.
Drones made in India
In December 2018, Adani Defense and Aerospace, the defense arm of Indian multinational holding company Adani Enterprises Limited, and Israel’s Elbit Systems inaugurated a manufacturing facility for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in Hyderabad. This factory is supposed to manufacture medium-range Hermes 900 model drones and UAVs capable of flying up to 36 hours at an altitude of 30,000 feet. And from the beginning of this year, the drones made in this factory were also exported to Israel.
Hussain of SIPRI said India has already started exporting UAVs and Hermes 900 drones to Israel as per the terms of the agreement. And the fear that they are being used against innocent Palestinians in Gaza cannot be ruled out.
Because at the beginning of this month, the Hezbollah group in Lebanon said that they had shot down a Hermes 900 model drone launched by Israel.
Al Jazeera contacted Israel’s Elbit Systems and did not receive a response. However, Adani Defense and Aerospace told Al Jazeera that it had exported a smaller shipment to Israel for non-combat operations.
India’s balancing strategy
India has been trying to balance its relations with Israel for a long time. Delhi therefore tried to project itself as a potential mediator in the Gaza war. Called for peace and ceasefire. It also called for the return of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.
From Prime Minister Narendra Modi to his foreign minister S Jaishankar and the country’s diplomats at the United Nations, Delhi believes in dialogue and negotiation, not war. But Al Jazeera contacted India’s foreign and defense ministries on June 17 and 21 to find out about India’s supply of arms to Israel, but received no response.
India recognized the state of Israel in 1950, 2 years after its creation. Palestine was recognized in 1988. Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat had a good relationship with the then Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi.
The Israeli-Palestinian Cold War ended in the 1990s. After the Indo-Pakistani war of 1999, most countries refused to sell arms to these two countries, especially Israel. And India took this opportunity.
Nicholas Blair, the author of The Evolution of India’s Israel Policy, said that Israel became involved in the transfer of technology to India. There is an exchange of technology between the two countries on various issues including drones, electrical sensors for border control, along with the training of surveillance systems on the border between Pakistan and China.
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Hindutva party BJP came to power in 2014, India moved away from its pro-Palestinian position.
Barrell said, after Modi’s visit to Israel in 2017, the bond between the two countries became stronger. Especially in matters like space and technology, the involvement of the two countries increases. Since then, Modi has repeatedly referred to Netanyahu as a ‘friend’.
India abstained from voting on the humanitarian ceasefire resolution at the UN General Assembly on 26 October following the Israeli offensive in Gaza. However, Delhi has been condemning the death of 1 thousand 139 Israelis in the attack by Hamas since the beginning.
Barrel also said that Modi’s BJP has lost its majority and came to power with the help of allies. Therefore, Modi should prioritize maintaining good diplomatic relations with all parties in the Middle East. And then India’s role will become clear.
Source: Al Jazeera
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