Court Seeks to Prevent the Netherlands from Exporting F-35 Parts to Israel

Human rights groups are seeking to prevent the Dutch government from exporting parts for F-35 fighter jets to Israel, arguing in court on Monday that these exports could make the Netherlands complicit in potential war crimes. The rights groups, including Oxfam Novib, the Dutch branch of the international charity organization, stated that "Israel uses the planes during attacks in Gaza that have resulted in civilian deaths." They added that "preventing the killing of civilians is more important than the Netherlands fulfilling its commercial or political obligations to allied countries." Lawyer Liesbeth Ziegveld mentioned in an urgent motion before the District Court of The Hague that "the state (of the Netherlands) must immediately stop the delivery of F-35 parts to Israel." She continued, "This is its obligation under... Article One of the Geneva Conventions and the Genocide Convention aimed at preventing genocide, as well as its obligation under export law."