Human rights organizations argued that the export of F-35 aircraft parts made the Netherlands complicit in the war.
A Dutch court has rejected a complaint filed by human rights organizations against the delivery of spare parts for F-35 fighter jets, used by Israel in its war in Gaza.
The Hague District Court ruled on Friday that it would not stop exports. The delivery of documents is above all a political decision in which judges should not interfere, he explains.
“The considerations formulated by the minister are to a large extent political and political in nature, and the judges should allow the minister great freedom,” the court explained of the decision.
Parts for the U.S.-owned F-35 are stored in a warehouse in the Netherlands and then shipped to several partners, including Israel, through existing export agreements.
However, NGOs, including local branches of Amnesty International and Oxfam, have argued that the supply route makes the Netherlands complicit in the war.
These pieces “allow us to drop real bombs on real homes and real families,” said Michiel Servaes, director of Oxfam Novib.
Dutch authorities said it was unclear whether they had the authority to intervene in the deliveries, which are part of a U.S.-led operation.
“Based on current information on the deployment of Israeli F-35s, it cannot be established that the F-35s are involved in serious violations of the humanitarian laws of war,” the government said in a letter to Parliament.
Liesbeth Zegveld, a human rights lawyer for the plaintiffs, rejected the claim, calling it “absurd.”
The Dutch government, she said, is familiar with what she calls “the enormous destruction of infrastructure and civilian centers in Gaza.”
Government lawyers also argued that if the Dutch did not supply the parts, Israel could easily obtain them elsewhere.
The war in Gaza, sparked after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, is currently in its third month.
Israel’s bombing of the enclave is drawing growing criticism, even from the United States, its closest ally. Gaza’s health ministry reports that the war has killed more than 18,700 people, mostly women and children, and injured nearly 51,000 people. Thousands more are believed to be buried under the rubble.
