US Arms shipments to Israel via Britain Britain should not be a conduit for arms shipments to war crime areas.
As Israel continues its senseless bombardment of Lebanon, it has been calling on the US for replenishment of its arsenal of 'smart bombs' which are supplied by America under the increased multi billion dollar aid package to Israel. It has emerged that transport planes carrying such weaponry to Israel are stopping over in the UK for refuelling.
Events on the ground in Lebanon have unquestionable shown that the results of such 'smart weaponry' have been the indiscriminate 'collateral damage' to life and limb of hundreds of civilians, mostly women, children and the frail and elderly.
Newly appointed British Foreign Secretary, Margaret Beckett's strongest action in the present crisis has been to suggest that the paperwork has not been correct in allowing American transport planes, carrying weapons shipments to Israel, a stop over at Glasgow Prestwick Airport. In effect the British Secretary of State was giving the USA the equivalent of a parking violation ticket.
The real issue is surely that Britain should not be instrumental in the supply of arms to fuel an Israeli war which is predominately an attack on the infrastructure and civilian population of a sovereign and friendly country, the Lebanon, and by inference a war crime.
The US arms shipments have now been diverted to an American military base in Britain, RAF Mildenhall, so that's OK then, irrespective of the 'ethical foreign policy' aspect and international law?
It has been revealed that Mrs Beckett did request the PM Tony Blair to call a temporary suspension of such flights via UK airfields but she was overruled
Deputy PM John Prescott, acting supremo whilst Tony Blair is touring the States, appears to also have office in name only.