A Dutch appeals court in The Hague on February 12 barred the government from sending parts for F-35 fighter jets to Israel because of the ongoing Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip. This is reported by the Associated Press.
According to the court’s decision, the country’s authorities are obliged to stop the export of spare parts for the F-35 to Israel within seven days.
“One cannot deny the obvious risk that the exported parts of the F-35 could be used in serious violations of human rights,” the court’s decision said.
The lawyers of the defense side, for their part, noted that this ban has no practical significance, because the USA will be able to send spare parts for the F-35 to Israel on its own, without resorting to the services of the Netherlands.
There is a warehouse in Voyensdrecht, the Netherlands, which belongs to the USA. It stores F-35 spare parts, which Washington then distributes to countries that request them, the Associated Press explained.
In December 2023, three Dutch human rights organizations filed a civil lawsuit in court claiming that the country’s government should review the export license due to Israel’s military operations in the Gaza Strip. The lawsuit stated that the Netherlands could become complicit in war crimes and violations of international law by supplying Israel with spare parts for F-35 fighter jets.
In January, a lower court sided with the Dutch government in the dispute.
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