THE HAGUE - A Dutch appeals court on Feb 12 ordered the government to block all exports of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel over concerns they were being used in violations of international law during Israel's Gaza offensive.

It said the state had to comply with the order within seven days and dismissed a request by government lawyers to suspend the order during an appeal to the Supreme Court. The state has eight weeks to appeal against the decision.

"It is undeniable that there is a clear risk the exported F-35 parts are used in serious violations of international humanitarian law," the court said.

The government said it would file an appeal at the Supreme Court, as it said the order had crossed the state’s responsibility to formulate its own foreign policy.

“The delivery of US F-35 parts to Israel in our view is not unjustified,” Trade Minister Geoffrey van Leeuwen said.

He said the F-35s were crucial for Israel’s security and its ability to protect itself from threats in the region, “for example from Iran, Yemen, Syria and Lebanon”.

Mr van Leeuwen said it was too early to say what effect the verdict would have on Israel.

“We are part of a big consortium of countries that are also working together with Israel, we will talk to partners how to deal with this.”

The decision to appeal was unrelated to the “very concerning” situation in Gaza, he added.

Israel’s massive aerial and ground offensive in the densely populated Gaza Strip has killed more than 28,000 Palestinians, according to the enclave’s health authorities. Most of its 2.3 million residents have also been displaced.

Israel denies committing war crimes in its attacks on Gaza.

The offensive followed a Hamas attack on southern Israel on Oct 7 in which 1,200 Israelis were killed and around 250 were taken hostage.

Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy could not comment on the case specifically, but said Israel expects allies “to stand firmly by our side as we fight to bring Hamas to justice in the wake of the October 7 massacre”.

In a separate legal case in January, the UN’s top court, the International Court of Justice, ordered Israel to take action to prevent acts of genocide in its war against Hamas. The ruling prompted renewed calls by human rights groups to ban weapons’ exports to Israel.

The case against the Dutch government was brought by several human rights groups, including the Dutch affiliate of Oxfam, in December 2023.

“We hope this ruling will strengthen international law in other countries so that the citizens of Gaza are also protected by international law,” Oxfam Novib director Michiel Servaes said in a statement.

Unacceptable civilian casualties

In a first ruling in December, a Dutch lower court had stopped short of ordering the Dutch government to halt the exports, even though it said it was likely that F-35s contributed to violations of the laws of war.

But where the lower court ruled the state had a large degree of freedom in weighing political and policy issues to decide on arms exports, the appeals court said such concerns did not trump the clear risk of breaches of international law.

The appeals court also said it was likely that the F-35s were being used in attacks on Gaza, leading to unacceptable civilian casualties. It dismissed the Dutch state's argument that it did not have to do a new check on the permit for the exports.

The Netherlands houses one of several regional warehouses of US-owned F-35 parts, from which the parts are distributed to countries that request them, including Israel in at least one shipment since the Oct 7 attacks.

Presiding Judge Bas Boele said there was a possibility the Dutch government could allow the export of F-35 parts to Israel in future, but only on the strict condition they would not be used in military operations in Gaza. REUTERS