Activists urge govt to cancel licenses of companies supplying military equipment to Israel

PTI, Aug 2, 2024, 11:56 AM IST

New Delhi: Citing an International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling which said Israel is in violation of obligations under the Genocide Convention, activists on Thursday demanded that government of India should cancel the licenses of the companies supplying military arms and equipment to Israel.

At a press conference here, author Arundhati Roy, Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Brinda Karat, development economist Jean Dreze, retired diplomat Ashok Sharma and advocate Prashant Bhushan said the Indian companies are supplying military equipment to Israel as it is a signatory to the Genocide Convention.

Karat said India has always had solidarity with Palestine and it requires people to hold the government accountable.

“Solidarity with Palestine requires us to hold accountable our own government and its actions which support the perpetrators of the continuing barbaric horror against children and people of Palestine,” Karat said.

“The Government of India should cancel all licenses to supply military equipment to Israel and hold the issuing of more licenses. Made in India equipment drones, explosive are being sent and used in the war, the genocide against Palestine,” she added.

Karat also said that India is also importing military and security equipment from Israel, which is economically helping Israel in its actions. She also slammed the government for sending the Indian labour to replace the Palestinian workers.

“Thousands of workers have been shipped off to Israel. This is direct support of apartheid policy of Zionist govt of Israel,” she said.

Karat also said the ongoing offensive in Gaza is being portrayed as a religious war which is not the truth, adding India is being complicit in one of the worst horrors world has witnessed.

Roy said it is the responsibility of people of India to show they are not complicit in what is happening in Gaza.

“We want this weapon export to stop,” she said.

Roy also said that while the US is being complicit by exporting arms to Israel, India is exporting its poverty by sending workers to Israel.

She also said it is being said that the US can stop the offensive by a phone call, but it looks like the US has also been captured by Israel and mentioned the way in which protests supporting Palestine were crushed there.

“Students in America can protest against their own government, but they cannot protest against Israel. When they protest against Israel, students and teachers are beaten up and arrested,” Roy said.

“As people we have to show we do not support our government in supporting what is happening in Gaza,” she added.

Dreze read out a statement by the Right to Food Campaign, which said while many Palestinians have died, those injured are deprived of medical facilities as Israel has been targeting relief workers, ambulances and healthcare workers as well.

He said the survivors are now being starved and the United Nations agencies estimate that more than 90 per cent of the population of Gaza is suffering from acute food deprivation.

“This attack on the right to food and healthcare is reason enough on its own to call for an immediate ceasefire and to end all cooperation with the state of Israel for the time being. Unfortunately, the Government of India has done nothing to contribute to an end to these war crimes,” he said.

“On the contrary, it has remained a faithful ally of the Israeli government – subsidizing Indian companies that produce military material for Israel, sending Indian workers to Israel in replacement of Palestinian workers, and suppressing protests against Israel in India. Even at the United Nations, India has mostly abstained from efforts to bring about resolutions that would restrain Israel,” he added.

Meanwhile, retired diplomat Ashok Sharma pointed out that while no official explanations are available, the posts on social media claim that India is helping Israel because they supplied India with arms during the Kargil war.

“How can you compare Kargil with Gaza? We were tying to throw out intruders, whereas in Gaza, it is a case of mass scale genocide against civilians who are innocent,” he said.

He also said that there were attempts during recent assembly as well as general elections to portray the ongoing conflict in Gaza to promote Islamophobia.

Bhushan said that India allowing export of military equipment to Israel is a violation of law and those officials who are involved should be punished.

The activists said they will submit a memorandum to the government as well as to all Parliament members.

Karat hoped that the issue would be raised in Parliament by the members.

“We have not heard this voice yet in Parliament. We will send this memorandum to the defence secretary and all MPs,” she said.