The French authorities must stop the ship of shame that transports arms to Saudi Arabia

https://contrainformacion.es/las-autoridades-francesas-deben-detener-el-barco-de-la-verguenza-que-transporta-armas-a-arabia-saudi/?fbclid=IwAR0PeC1kYi7mwZT1Fw0mGfn1tj3jcvL99YOCRdgYj4CJOJhd5U9ELlLG1G8
Amnesty International today warned of the need to stop in France, on its way through the port of Marseille-Fos, a Saudi freighter that, apparently, transports Canadian armored vehicles to Saudi Arabia. The organization has warned of the serious danger that the material transported by the Bahri Tabuk will be used by the Saudi armed forces to commit war crimes and other abuses in Yemen, and has affirmed that there are well-founded reasons to fear that, in the port of Marseille -Fos, also load French ammunition destined for Saudi Arabia.

As you can see in the agenda of the Bahri shipping company, the Bahri Tabuk had planned to travel to Genoa after having arrived in Canada, but in the end it was directed to Marseille.

On 9 and 10 May, thanks to legal actions taken by French NGOs and the scrutiny of public opinion, another Saudi freighter, the Bahri Yanbu, was prevented from berthing in the port of Le Havre. cargo of French weapons.

"We have reason to fear that the shipment of arms that Bahri Yanbu could not collect will now be collected by the Bahri Tabuk," said Aymeric Elluin, head of Amnesty International France's advocacy work on weapons.

"It is necessary to prevent this ship of shame from picking up those dangerous shipments of French weapons and also to carry weapons from other countries, such as Canada, to Saudi Arabia. The arrival of Bahri Tabuk puts France's willingness to respect its obligations under the Arms Trade Treaty and the European Union's common position on the control of arms brokering to the test again. "
As a signatory to both instruments, France must prevent the transit of a vessel if there is a serious or manifest danger that the arms it carries are used to commit or facilitate abuses, such as war crimes.
French weapons for Saudi Arabia

On May 28, the journalist organization Disclose revealed that, according to its sources, the Bahri Tabuk planned to load ammunition in France for the Caesar shells that were to be sold to Saudi Arabia, in accordance with the provisions of the OASIS 6 contract. If this claim is complied with, the shipment would contravene Article 6.3 of the Arms Trade Treaty, according to which no transfer should be authorized if there is a risk that the material in question may be used to commit human rights violations, including war crimes.

France is one of the many States Parties to the Arms Trade Treaty that continue to supply arms to Saudi Arabia, despite the real danger that they will be used to commit war crimes in Yemen. By continuing to supply arms to Saudi Arabia, France is openly breaching its international obligations.

According to a recent analysis of the Observatoire économique de la défense (economic observatory of the defense), exports of French arms grew in 2018, due, mainly, to the delivery of armored vehicles to Saudi Arabia. Specifically, it deals with VAB MAK3 armored combat vehicles, built by Arquus, and equipped with medium-caliber ARX25 turrets, manufactured by Nexter.

Canadian armored vehicles
 
On May 17, the Bahri Tabuk sailed the port of Saint John, in Canada. According to reliable testimonies and photographs obtained by Amnesty International it is very likely that, on board. transport a cargo of lightweight Canadian-made armored vehicles bound for Saudi Arabia. Previously, Amnesty International had managed to confirm that the first ship, Bahri Yanbu, had transported Canadian armored vehicles to Saudi Arabia during a trip in October 2018.

Several Canadian media outlets have reported images posted on social media by members of the Saudi National Guard, which seem to confirm the presence of these armored vehicles, a few months ago, on the unstable Saudi border with Yemen. Amnesty International has not been able to verify this point.

Amnesty International urges Canada - the country that is currently following the process of accession to the Arms Trade Treaty - to harmonize its legislation with the obligations arising from that treaty to end this type of exports.

Both Amnesty International and its partner organizations will continue to closely monitor the movements of any Saudi vessel suspected of transporting military equipment, and will denounce those States that fail to comply with their international legal obligations.