HRW to Western countries: Stop selling weapons to Israel

Pars Today — Human Rights Watch has called for a halt to arms sales to Israel.

According to Pars Today, citing ISNA, Human Rights Watch, pointing to the continuation of Israeli attacks in Lebanon and their humanitarian consequences, urged Western countries to stop the sale and transfer of weapons and military assistance to Israel.

In a report referring to Israel’s extensive attacks on Lebanon, the organization said Israel’s allies—including the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and European Union countries—should halt the sale and transfer of weapons and military aid to Israel. The report states that more than 100 Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon on April 8, including in densely populated areas of Beirut, killed over 300 people and damaged the last major bridge connecting southern Lebanon to other parts of the country. This action threatens the access of tens of thousands of people to humanitarian aid, food, and medical services.

Ramzi Qais, a Lebanon researcher at Human Rights Watch, said that over the past two years, “serious violations and war crimes by the Israeli army in Lebanon and Gaza have devastated the lives of civilians,” adding that the continued supply of weapons to Israel and the silence of other countries have contributed to the escalation of these actions.