ANTI-ARMS campaigners have been granted permission to appeal a ruling declaring that arms exports to Saudi Arabia were lawful.

The Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) has an “arguable” case that the Department for International Trade (DTI) has an obligation to decide whether “there had been historic serious violations of [international humanitarian law] by the [Saudi-led] coalition in the Yemen,” the Court of Appeal ruled today.

CAAT challenged the DTI’s failure to suspend arms export licences to Saudi Arabia in February 2017, arguing that there was a “clear risk” that arms sold to the kingdom would be used in violation of international law.