Great Britain: Gaza Is "Hell On Earth"--But Assisting Libya Kill Protesters Is In Their "Overwhelming Interest"?

You may well think that hell on earth would not be an understatement of what the Gazans suffered at that time."
Judge George Bathurst-Norman

Great Britain takes a very dim view of providing arms to Israel:

The judge in the trial of seven activists acquitted of damaging an arms factory suggested that their leader should be awarded the George Cross for his campaign.

The seven were cleared after they successfully claimed they had acted to prevent Israeli "war crimes" when the broke into the Brighton factory on January 17, 2009.

Hailed a great victory by pro-Palestinian activists, the seven from "Smash EDO" were acquitted of causing £180,000 worth of damage to the EDO MBM factory in Brighton - which denied ever having supplied Israel with arms equipment.

In his summing-up speech, in which he attacked both Israel and the United States, Judge George Bathurst-Norman told the Hove Crown Court jury: "You may well think that hell on earth would not be an understatement of what the Gazans suffered at that time."

This is more than just the whim of a judge who overstepped his authority--in Great Britain withholding arms from Israel extends to the political realm as well:

Following public outcry from British citizens and members of Parliament, the United Kingdom in July revoked five licenses for the export of arms components to Israel. The British decision could encourage other European Union (EU) members to review their current Israel export policy, a European Commission (EC) official said. According to a British government official, an EU working group will meet in Brussels Sept. 4 to discuss exports to Israel.

But if the British are really so concerned about the consequences of the weapons they export, why is it that Great Britain is illegally assisting Muslim rulers in killing protesters:

Abu Dhabi arms fair: Tanks, guns, teargas and trade at Idex 2011
British firms are still selling crowd control weapons despite the government having revoked 44 licences

Inside the exhibition hall [at Idex 2011, the Middle East's biggest arms fair], brimming with weapons – from Predator drones to the latest digital camouflaged assault rifle, few could ignore the real violence happening in Libya and Bahrain.

In the British pavilion, the UK delegation angling for arms contracts, led by Gerald Howarth, the defence minister, came under growing pressure to explain the UK's role in arming dictatorial and repressive regimes in the region after the government revoked 44 licences to sell arms to Bahrain and eight licences for Libya.

...Analysis by the Guardian of export licence records held by the Department for Business shows that the UK government issued 20 licences between July and September last year for export to Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman of riot control weapons including teargas, smoke and stun grenades.

...A licence has been issued to supply shotguns to Bahrain, and sniper rifles to Oman and Qatar.

Apparently the reports coming out of Libya Bahrain of unarmed protesters being shot in the street does not qualify as "hell on earth" according to British sensitivities.

And of course, when it comes to Libya, the British reserve for themselves a very special relationship--to the extent that Great Britain decided that releasing Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, the Lockerbie bomber, was "in the overwhelming interests of the United Kingdom"--as in oil.

Apparently, Great Britain is selective when it comes to what is in their interest--and catering to the Muslim world is one of them.

While the good judge may think that Gaza is "hell on earth", Great Britain as a whole apparently thinks that all those Muslim despots shooting at their people with British assistance is nothing special.

In the end, Judge George Bathurst-Norman was reprimanded by the two most senior law officers in the realm, the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice.

Who will reprimand Great Britain that assisting Muslim despots in killing their citizens is not in their best interests?

Hat Tip: My Right Word, AH, and BoL

Technorati Tag: Great Britain and Protest.