secure.avaaz.org/en/no_more_saudi_arms_deals_loc/?slideshow
There is a vote tomorrow in the EU on stopping arms sales to Saudi.
This link should show anyone interested how to get in touch by facebook or other methods and ask those involved to stop the arms trade.
Strangely enough, this is an important part of the EU, and why we should stay in. The UK government wants to continue selling arms to Saudi.
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Should we bomb De-ash/ISIS in Syria?
(932 Posts)Blair took us into the Iraq war (to keep his American allies happy) and the Middle East was de-stabilised.
Its even more unstable and Cameron seems keen to send bombers there,presumably to keep his EU allies happy (given his negotiations...).
ISIS/DEA-SH thrive on chaos. They are a death cult aimed at hastening the end of the world. (Day of Judgement, Islam style).
Given the chaos in Syria and Iraq with all the different factions on the ground and Russia joining the throng in the air I cannot see why joining in would be either helpful or wise.
The poor civilians on the ground are now in fear of Assad, De-ash/ISIS and the bombs.
Cameron's arguments are thin.
Here are some more arguments on the other side voxpoliticalonline.com/2015/11/27/how-many-innocents-will-die-because-of-right-wing-labours-petulance/
Your MP will be heading back to their constituency to think about this over the weekend.
If you are against the bombing please, please write to your MP.
You can use this very easy site. You just type in your postcode and the site will ensure that your MP gets your email. They will be getting lots of emails on the subject so there is no need to be long-winded, so it's a 5 minute task. www.writetothem.com
The EU has voted for an EU wide embargo on arms sales to Saudi.
Cameron obviously did not know about it.
www.theguardian.com/world/2016/feb/25/david-cameron-brilliant-uk-arms-exports-saudi-arabia-bae
I hope it can still be stopped.
MEPs have voted for a European Union-wide arms embargo against Saudi Arabia to protest against the Gulf state’s heavy bombing campaign in Yemen.
The European parliament voted by a large majority for an EU-wide ban on arms sales to the kingdom, citing the “disastrous humanitarian situation” as a result of “Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen”.
The vote does not compel EU member states to act but it does increase pressure on Riyadh, in the wake of criticism from the UN and growing international alarm over civilian casualties in Yemen.
British and US military 'in command room' for Saudi strikes on Yemen
Read more
The resolution also turns up the heat on the British government, which has supplied export licences for up to £3bn worth of arms to Saudi Arabia in the last year. The UK has been accused of direct involvement in the bombing campaign through the deployment of UK military personnel to the kingdom.
And many think we are so for peace
So how will that effect German, France, Spain and Italy?
Am I incorrect in saying Germany and France export more than the UK when it comes to Arms Sales?
Happy to be put right on the subject.
Does it matter who exports the most?
The UK is part of the EU, still, as are France and Germany.
The EU has voted for an EU wide embargo on selling arms to Saudi, because they are used to kill the people of the Yemen, who seem to be forgotten about with all the problems of Syria.
"British and American military officials are in the command and control centre for Saudi airstrikes on Yemen, and have access to lists of targets, although they do not play any role in choosing them, the Saudi Arabian foreign minister has said.
Human rights groups, the European parliament and the UN have all expressed concerns about airstrikes by a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, in support of the internationally recognised government.
Nearly 3,000 civilians have been killed in Yemen since full-blown civil war broke out in March, according to the UN. A million other people have been displaced and the country is now at serious risk of famine.
The UK government has been put on notice that it is in breach of international law for allowing the export of British-made missiles and military equipment to Saudi Arabia that might have been used to kill civilians."
It's the UK government that is in breach of international law.
stopwar.org.uk/index.php/news/2997-protect-local-democracy
I find this absolutely appalling, as well. Anyone who has a local authority pension, they are going to be forced to put your money into arms traders. Up until now, they have been able to specifically exclude certain companies for ethical reasons. They are going to be stopped from doing that.
Diane Abbott Shadow Secretary of State for International Development
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions her Department has had with (a) other government departments and (b) external organisations on the effects of UK arms sales to Saudi Arabia on the delivery of development aid.
Hansard source
(Citation: HC Deb, 26 February 2016, cW)
Justine Greening
DFID plays a key role in the UK government’s wider efforts to promote a more stable Yemen that is more able to address its humanitarian needs, working closely with other government departments to ensure that our combined diplomatic, humanitarian and military efforts make the maximum contribution to improving the situation in Yemen.
As part of this, we discuss all issues of relevance to the humanitarian response. We also meet regularly with external organisations to discuss the humanitarian situation and delivery of aid in Yemen.
This was Greening's written response to Diane Abbott's written question.
The government is just ignoring the fact that we are selling arms to Saudi Arabia so they can kill people in Yemen. It's not as if she did not have time to find a correct response.
act.thesyriacampaign.org/go/223?t=1&akid=297.124249.Tk7WAi
This is from the Syria Campaign. Hard to believe it started as a peaceful demonstration five years ago.
act.thesyriacampaign.org/letter/save-daraya
The people of Daraya are reduced to eating grass. They have not been sent any aid for over a thousand days.
Thought we were sending millions of pounds there to feed them
Thank you Jen for posting that link ,
Syria seems to have been forgotten about now.
act.thesyriacampaign.org/go/251?t=1&akid=304.124249.GuGZLB
A link from the Syria Campaign about who is killing the most civilians.
No surprise there Jen, Syrians have been telling us this but we don't want to hear, easier to blame others than the government
What it also shows is that we should not have agreed to join the US led coalition in the bombing. We are always told that we have killed no civilians.
311 is a bit more than none.
And so many believed we didn't kill innocent Syrians Jen, still do believe it
Does anyone know how many Isis we have killed?
Have we killed more civilians than Isis members?
Seems we haven't killed one civilian , we are able to bomb Isis only , just as we are giving millions to camps in Syria to help the Syrians stay in their own country, no mention they are starving in the camps
click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5gA/ni0YAA/t.1wd/Obi2QTHgQpGii6ttKMmjkQ/h3/BuF0wchcWp9Vl3Z9LimmO7L40NNZLTQHcnGI9dxzhZQw3g9YQ6H-2FfudegtFkfuBw89SMxDZ7TNhoOqwSNtvOb-2Fzbq36SCScCn-2B2Qy0tvdsi6QhuCQ4WHvMf3dQTS7gbT1VrWhlMwYb8uX-2FAIkUUSx6L0tRzz6g4wmM1-2BlHXGnC9K-2FwEV9CEJ1nhEiGljCFbJ1xvUvqmPh8c1VgErRIv2xQ-3D-3D
Sorry about the link but it works.
About Syrian refugee girls that the Malala Fund is helping.
www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2016/04/confessions-air-force-drone-technician-afghanistan-160406114636155.html
This US soldier says civilians were killed in Kandahar. I can't imagine it's any different now when using drones.
I note that Assad of Syria has promised stability in that region if foreign investors will re-build the devastated country. Where does he think the UK will get the money from? More tax from those of us actually paying it. Sugar tax? Or will he start a tax free charitable fund to be based in Panama from donations given by the generous British public.
We did actually bomb a lot of it, CelticRose. So did he, but we have to take our share of the blame for the devastation, even those of us who did not want to bomb it in the first place, but particularly those who agreed with the bombing.
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