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Arms manufactured in #Belgium are used by dictator governments and criminal organisations worldwide. While the govt has halted or banned sale to these countries, our @bellingcat & @LHreports research will show how manufacturers make a buck out of a bad bang.
FN Herstal is a popular Belgium manufacturer, but our open source research shows that some of their weapon systems have been granted the sale to be used in controversial conflicts. One of those is the Yemen intervention, where it is used by Saudi Arabia. #EUArms #BelgianArms 
UK was warned by human rights bodies (@Amnesty: amnesty.org/en/latest/news…) to stop sending arms to Saudi Arabia, yet Belgium has sent millions of Euros worth of arms to Saudi which are used in Yemen conflict. @amnestybe also warned this: amnesty.org/en/latest/news… #EUArms #BelgianArms
#Belgium’s #Walloon Government halted arms exports to Saudi Arabia in 2017, with the exception that arms can still be sold to Saudi National Guard, as their “mission is to protect the country's borders and strategic locations” and do not engage in the war in Yemen. #BelgianArms
Our evidence shows that the Saudi National Guard use #BelgianArms weapons on the border of Saudi Arabia with Yemen, where the Saudi-led intervention is causing severe human rights abuses of starvation, according to Human Rights Watch: hrw.org/news/2019/01/1…
The Belgian FN F2000 can be seen in footage from this outpost, on border of Yemen & Saudi Arabia, near town of Najran. Outpost was here: goo.gl/maps/TYnvVbwhM…. To find this, we layered @terraserver imagery in @googleearth, using shadows of mountains indicating true height.
The Saudi National Guard who use the Belgian-made FN F2000 weren’t just involved in border conflicts. We analysed hours of footage and we able to find numerous videos of National Guard fighting in Yemen, namely in the Sa’dah region (صعدة). #BelgianArms #EUArms
Skirmishes between Saudi National Guard using Belgian-made government-granted FN F2000 and Houthi fighters have been common. These are the weapons used where the licences state they are not meant to be used in engaging in the conflict in #Yemen. #BelgianArms #EUArms
We also found these Belgian-made turrets firing Belgian ammunition into #Yemen from Saudi soil. The LAV seen in the footage from social media, was at this location when it was firing: goo.gl/maps/AZ2uYzKYn… #BelgianArms #EUArms
It’s also interesting to see another one of FN’s weapons, this time, the ‘cop killer’ in the #Mexican cartels. Even though EU treaty prevents selling to countries where there is a ‘risk of diversion of arms’ Belgium still grants licences to Mexico. #BelgianArms #EUArms
Our full reports for arms we tracked in Netherlands, Italy, Germany and Belgium so far, with evidence, can be found on #EUArms website (euarms.com/weapon). For coverage on our arms investigations, follow @LHReports & @Bellingcat. h/t to @Stan_Brabant for 📸 #BelgianArms
We also looked at who is providing the arms for bombings in Yemen, and while there were a number of EU manufacturers involved, we found that Belgium manufactures the displays for the Eurofighter Typhoon and the MRTT that refuels jets - both used by Saudi Arabia. #BelgianArms
Here we can see the Eurofighter present on the tarmac of different airbases in Saudi Arabia. These EFs are used in active bombing campaign in Yemen, which @bellingcat has been documenting recently. #BelgianArms #EUArms h/t to @leone_hadavi for the dedication to tracking these.
We found evidence of both Eurofighter Typhoon (BAE, Airbus & Leonardo), & the A330 MRTT using Belgian displays, flying near Saudi/Yemen border geolocated to here: goo.gl/maps/3sSrBaUNT…. @CivMilAir also provided evidence to show that the MRTT crossed into Yemen airspace. #EUArms
Ministers said they would not grant licences to HR offenders yet our 10-day research in a cafe with 👎 wifi, shows #BelgianArms providers still make money out of HR abuses. A big h/t to @LudoHekman @klaasvandijken @bibken @leone_hadavi @jeroenzuallaert @joelmatriche and others 🙌
"Belgian leaders are considering suspending arms sales to Saudi Arabia, after an investigation revealed that they had been used in the ongoing war in Yemen." - middleeasteye.net/news/belgian-f…. The work from our #BelgianArms project with @bellingcat & @LHreports has made an impact.
