DSEI and Israeli Apartheid

Anarchist Action Network: Resist Israeli Apartheid Resist DSEI
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Israel and DSEI

Israel’s participation at DSEi (Defence & Security Equipment International) is organised by SIBAT, a department of the Israeli government responsible for the IDF’s arms procurement. The last DSEI event (in 2013) was attended by the Director of SIBAT, Israel’s Ambassador to the UK, Israel’s Defence Attache to the UK and representatives of the participating Israeli industries. In December last year, SIBAT were originally listed as official sponsors of DSEI 2015. However, after attention was drawn to this by activists, this entry was removed.

The next event (DSEI 2015) will be held in the third week of September at Newham’s Excel Centre in East London. There will be a week of action against the arms fair. More info will be available here in due course.

Why Resisting DSEI 2015 Resists Israeli Apartheid

  • Israeli Arms Dealers
    Elbit Systems will showcase their three UK subsidiaries: Instro Precision, Ferranti Technologies and Elite KL. Elbit is Israel’s largest publicly traded arms and security company. 85% of drones used by the Israeli military are manufactured by them. Elbit’s armed drones were used during last summer’s ‘Operation Protective Edge’, which killed over 2,000 Palestinians, and was so horrific NGOs described it as a ’war on children’. The Israeli ‘defence’ sector provides a large proportion of the weapons and equipment used by the Israeli military against Palestinians, as well as high-tech repression and surveillance technologies used in the apartheid wall and checkpoints to ‘police’ the occupation.
  • Joint Academic Military-related Research and Development
    DSEI 2015 exhibitor Cranfield University has taken up significant European funding for joint research and development projects with Israel Aircraft Industries, Nanomotion Ltd (of Israel) and Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd; in collaboration with Qinetiq, Rolls Royce, Siemens, Thales, Airbus UK (aka EADS) and EADS France. Not only does such joint research provide a false veneer of normalcy to institutions at the heart of Israel’s colonial system, but it is also likely to directly build on and further support the development of technology and techniques used to violently suppress Palestinian human rights.
  • MOD Procurement
    The UK Ministry Of Defence (MOD) spends millions of pounds each year on ‘battle-tested’ arms from Israeli companies. One growing link is in the area of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), also known as drones. According to Israeli Aircraft Industries, Israel is the world’s leading exporter of drones, with more than 1,000 sold to different countries netting Israel around $350m a year. There is a call from human rights groups to demand a comprehensive military embargo to include military imports FROM Israeli arms companies – as well as other forms of military collaboration. The MOD’s procurement arm will be exhibiting at DSEI 2015.

COMPANIES THAT PROP UP THE BRUTAL AND ILLEGAL OCCUPATION

  • Caterpillar supplies military bulldozers to Israel. Their machines have been used for the demolition of Palestinian houses in the occupied Palestinian territories, the construction of settlements, the Separation Wall and settlement infrastructure on Palestinian land, for creating roadblocks, dispersing demonstrations and as weapons. Their D9 armoured bulldozer series has been used for operational tasks such as large-scale house demolitions in Gaza, land-clearing missions in Palestinian towns and arresting or killing Palestinian suspects.
  • JCB equipment has been used on illegal projects such as the construction of the Apartheid Wall, Israeli settlements and the demolition of Palestinian homes. JCB has more recently entered a new phase of complicity with Israeli war crimes by moving from supplying civilian machines to military vehicles.
  • L-3 Communications has supplied scanners for Gaza’s Beit Hanoun (Erez) checkpoint (through Hashmira Israel, a subsidiary of G4S) and personal luggage scanners for West Bank checkpoints. Israeli military attacks have destroyed vital services in Gaza, while the Israeli siege has prevented life saving equipment from reaching services in the Strip.
  • Numerous other companies hold high value contracts with the apartheid regime, including DaIwoo, Kelvin Hughes, E2V, Accenture, BT, Cisco and Dell.

COMPANIES THAT SUPPLY ARMS TO ISRAEL

Over fifty companies registered to exhibit at DSEI 2015 are publicly known to form part of the supply chain of arms to Israel (and there are probably many more). Some supply equipment directly to the Israeli military, others make components that go into US-built equipment destined for Israel. During and since the start of the military action against Gaza in July 2014, with the ensuing deaths of over 2,000 Palestinians and the destruction of homes and vital infrastructure, there have been many calls for an international arms embargo. The sales continue.

Listed below are just a few of the DSEI 2015 companies that supply arms to Israel:

  • Lockheed Martin is the single biggest overseas supplier for the Israeli armaments industry. It has many ongoing contracts, including manufacturing F16 fighter bombers used by the Israeli military (IDF) against Palestinians. Lockheed Martin Florida produces the Hellfire missile system for Apache attack helicopters used by Israel against Palestinians; and produces Israel’s main battle tank, the Merkava MK4.
  • Airbus (aka EADS) manufactures Eagle 1 drones together with Israeli Aircraft Industries.
  • BAE Systems manufactures ‘Head Up Displays’ (HUDs) for some F16 aircraft, parts of the ‘navigation suite’ and elements of the ‘self-protection suite’ for all of Israel’s F16 jets.
  • Raytheon is the world’s largest producer of guided missiles and a major arms contractor to the Israeli military. Raytheon manufactures missiles used by Israel in the occupied territories, including the Sparrow, AGM 65, Maverick, Patriot , AIM 9 Sidewinder, and TOW missiles. The Maverick is a precision, air-to-ground missile that is used against small mobile and hard targets. Missiles are frequently used against Palestinians in crowded residential areas such as refugee camps. They are also used in targeted assassinations of Palestinians without trial, evidence, or the opportunity for defense. Raytheon won an Israeli contract to supply $149.3 million in Tamir missiles.
  • Northrop Grumman collaborates with Lockheed Martin in producing the Israeli F16I Sufa (‘Storm’) aircraft by providing the AN/APG68 (V)9 multimode radar that provides for high-resolution ground mapping. With Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman also produces the Longbow System which, when installed greatly enhances the Apache’s lethality. The Longbow system includes fire control radar and the Hellfire Missile. Longbows were used in the assaults on Gaza.
  • Chemring manufactures munitions, counter-measures, counter-IED technology and pyrotechnics. Products include 40mm grenades, mortar shells, naval munitions, and detonators.
  • ITT Corporation manufactures several components for the Israeli military including the ALOFTS sonar system and intensifier tubes for night vision goggles. Night vision goggles are used by pilots, co-pilots and crews of fixed wing and rotary wing aircraft, especially helicopter crews. They enable Israel to attack refugee camps and villages in the middle of the night, when many of these raids and assaults take place.
  • General Dynamics manufactures the GD 883 diesel engine for Israel’s Merkava 4 battle tanks. These tanks are frequently used against Palestinians in the occupied territories. It also produces equipment used on the F-16 Fighting Falcon Jets. General Dynamics is the general contractor for the production of 3,500 MK-84 “general purpose” bombs, spares and repair parts for Israel. These were among the weapons used in Israel’s massive assaults on Gaza.
  • Boeing has been a major supplier of the F15 Eagle and the AH64 Apache attack helicopter to Israel. These aircraft have been used to attack Palestinians in the occupied territories, resulting in many civilian casualties. Boeing makes missile systems, F15 software, Apache Helicopters, and Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM), a guided air-to-surface weapon. All these weapons are sold to the Israeli military and were used in the massive Israeli assaults on Gaza.
  • Thales produces radars, sonars, electronic surveillance satellites, tactical communication and combat management systems, drones, avionics, armoured vehicles, mortar systems and missiles. Thales is currently pursuing a joint-venture with Israeli company Elbit to build 54 drones for the UK MoD.
  • GKN manufactures components for the Eurofighter, F-18, F-35 and F-15, amongst others. The F-15 was widely used during massacres in Lebanon and Gaza.

We stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people in their struggle for justice against massacre and brutal ongoing occupation. We hope that you will join us in this fight to shut down the Israeli war machine.