'Opaque approvals': Will Australia abandon arms sales to Israel?

Australia is reviewing all the 66 military export permits for Israel that were approved before Israel's war on Gaza last year, according to reports.

"As circumstances in the Middle East evolve, Australia continues to scrutinise pre-existing export permits to Israel to ensure they align with our calibrated approach,” The Guardian reported on Saturday citing an unnamed defence spokesperson.

The review comes after an application from the Australian Centre for International Justice to Defense Minister Richard Marles in April, calling for the annulment of all current export permits to Tel Aviv and to other countries which might later make them available to Israel.

The outcome of the review is to be announced “in coming months”.

Canberra has repeatedly said it has not supplied weapons or ammunition to Israel since the war started, and it continues to maintain that position.

The federal government, however, has faced criticism for failing to be transparent about what each permit covers.

Canberra has also defended its supply of parts for the global supply chain for the F-35 fighter aircraft. Israel has used F-35 aircraft in Gaza, where it has killed more than 42,000 people.

According to Amnesty International, because of Australia’s opaque approval process for arms transfers, we don’t know what arms are exported, to what country, or for what purpose.

Thales Australia, who manufacture TNT for 155mm artillery ammunition shells out of Benalla in Victoria, as well as completed M795 155mm projectiles, likely provide these to the US through approved defence export permits.

In December 2023 a $147.5 million export permit from the US to Israel for 155mm shells was approved. Part of this permit was M795 155mm shells, which are the same kind manufactured by Thales in Benalla, meaning that Australian-manufactured ammunition might be used by the Israeli army in Gaza.

Full arms embargo

According to the Defence Ministry, Australia is not a major defence exporter to Israel, but permits are required for a range of items, including IT equipment, software, radios, electronic components and dual-use goods.

Australia has issued about 247 permits that relate to Israel since 2019, of which about 66 remain active, according to officials.

The Greens, Australia's third-largest political party, has demanded an end to all two-way military trade with Israel, with the party’s defence spokesperson, David Shoebridge, saying Australia must not do anything to “embolden Israel to continue the genocide.”

According to a statement issued by The Greens, "the history of Australia’s export of weapons parts to Israel precedes the current genocide in Gaza. One area of particular contention is the export of parts of the Spike missile into the global supply chain of Israeli weapons manufacturer Rafael Systems."

The Spike missile is reported to be the missile that Israel used to kill seven aid workers from World Central Kitchen in Gaza including Australian aid worker Zomi Frankcom in April this year.

But the government of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has pushed back at the idea of ending contracts with Israeli companies that supply goods for use by the Australian Defense Force and police.

The Australian Centre for International Justice welcomed the review, saying the development is the result of sustained pressure from the protest movement, and the public to cut exports to the "rogue" state.

"For the past 12 months, the Australian government has been put on notice by the ICJ, the ICC, UN bodies, and countless international organisations about Israel's long catalogue of violations of international law. We're calling for a full arms embargo, no imports, no exports, no transfers," the centre said in a statement posted on X.