A British diplomat has resigned over his government's arms sales to Israel

A British diplomat in Ireland has resigned over British arms sales to Israel, alleging in his resignation letter that the Foreign Office may be complicit in war crimes.

Agence France-Presse reported on Monday that Mark Smith, a diplomat at the British Embassy in Dublin, resigned over British arms sales to Israel, writing in his resignation letter: "There is no reason for the UK to continue to sell arms to Israel."

Smith, who describes himself as an expert on arms sales policy, served as second secretary for counter-terrorism, a relatively junior position in the Foreign Office. The BBC reported Monday that Smith issued a follow-up statement saying he had written to his British counterpart to inform him of his resignation and urged him to urgently review Britain's approach to the situation in Gaza.

"We witness daily examples of war crimes committed by the State of Israel in Gaza and clear and unequivocal violations of international humanitarian law," he said.

Smith also said concerns he had raised with the Foreign Office at every level about the legality of arms sales had fallen on deaf ears, and accused the British government of failing to establish a robust and transparent arms export licensing system.

A spokesman for the British Foreign Office said that while it would not comment on individual cases, the government was committed to upholding international law. "We have made it clear that we will not export items that could be used to commit or contribute to the commission of serious violations of international humanitarian law," the spokesperson said in a statement.

After taking office last month, British Foreign Minister PASCAL Lamy ordered a legal review into whether British arms export licenses to Israel could contribute to violations of international humanitarian law. The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it would provide an update once the review process was complete.

Between the start of the conflict on October 7 and the end of May, the UK had issued 42 military licences to Israel, according to government figures.

Lamy said there would be no blanket ban on arms sales to Israel, but that issues related to offensive weapons in Gaza would be considered.

According to the Gaza Health Ministry, the Israeli military operation in Gaza has killed more than 40,000 people since October 7.