Israel’s attacks on Gaza have been described by ministers as “intolerable”, “appalling” and “cruel”. Last year this government suspended around a tenth of Israel’s arms export licences. Yet this summer the UK managed to sell record amounts of arms to Israel, including over one hundred thousand bullets in just one month.

The UK exports billions of pounds worth of parts for fighter jets, bombs and other defence equipment every year. Protest groups, like the now-banned Palestine Action, have repeatedly targeted UK defence sites, including those belonging to Israel’s largest arms producer, Elbit Systems.

So why are we exporting arms to countries who target civilians? Why is the arms industry so entwined with the UK economy? And does more military spending really keep us safe?

Ayeisha Thomas-Smith is joined by Khem Rogaly (Common Wealth and Transition Security Project) and David Wearing (University of Sussex).

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Produced by Katrina Gaffney and Margaret Welsh.

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