Position of the State of Israel on the Prevention of Small Arms and Light Weapons Trafficking
The purchase, transportation, concealment and use of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) ought to
be of highest concern to the international community. The use of SALW by various terrorist
organizations, situated around the globe, is not only a powerful and dangerous threat to citizens of many
countries, but an insurmountable obstacle to long-term peace. Israel fears that with shifting and unstable
global geopolitics, especially the Arab Awakening, the acquisition of SALWs may become more
prominent and their use more common. The list of weapons that qualify by UN standards for SALW
classification is extensive and detailed; as a country with mandatory military conscription whose defense
budget accounts for 6.5% of its GDP (compared with 4.5% for U.S.A./Russia, 2.2% for China), Israel
understands the importance of SALW to a functioning, defensive military. It does not take lightly,
however, any transportation, concealment, or use of SALW in unregulated areas that harbor, foster, and
promote terrorism.
The State of Israel is very familiar with the dangerous and illegal usage of SALW, particularly in the
Palestenian Territories (Gaza Strip and West Bank) and countries in the immediate vicinity of Israel.
From 2001 to 2004, the Palestenian people waged an “intifada” on the State of Israel: this was an
intensified period of violence using tactics such as suicide bombings and the planting of
landmines/improvised explosive devices (IEDs) on busy roads. The Intifada killed over 1,100 Israelis and
over 5,000 Palestenians, and truly caused a time of constant violence. Two years later, Hezbollah, a
terrorist organization recognized as such by the UN, launched a war on Israel using hundreds of Katyusha
rockets. The war caused 44 civilian deaths in Israel, and over 1,000 Lebanese casualties due to the illegal
and irresponsible actions taken by Hezbollah in the battlefield. In the eight years between 2001 to 2008,
Hamas, another UN-classified terrorist organization that controls the Gaza Strip, has launched over 8,600
deadly rockets (average of three a day) on southern Israeli cities, killing 26 civilians and causing PostTraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) to affect the lives of thousands of Israelis. The unjustified and
unprovoked rocket attacks, recently beginning to contain illegal white phosphorus, has caused the State of
Israel to take extreme action in order to protect its citizens, and enact a UN-legal naval blockade on Gaza
to block the importation of various SALW to the Gaza Strip.
Trafficking of SALW is rapidly and exponentially growing, and Israel is determined to stop the process at
the transportation phase before innocent lives are lost or military action is needed. In 2009 and 2011,
Israeli special forces captured two large ship vessels headed from Iran to Lebanon containing great
amounts of SALWs meant for Hezbollah. The missions were successful with minimal casualties, and
prevented the prolonging of the conflict.
Israel has always been a firm believer in the power of peaceful negotiations, and uses military strength as
a last resort. It places top priority, however, on the safety of the lives of its citizens. Therefore, Israel feels
that cooperation within the international community is needed in order to form international standards for
the operation, maintenance, and checking of exports and imports shipments, and have those standards
strongly and widely enforced. Stopping the trafficking of SALW at the transportation stage is optimal for
all sides, with small numbers of casualties and little amounts of military action needed.
Idan Ben-Yitschak, Israeli delegate