South Africa blocks arms sales to Saudi Arabia, UAE after allies refuse compulsory 'on-site inspection'

The move came after both Gulf states refused inspection requests by South African officials, which is required under the country’s export laws.

The clause stipulates South African officials must inspect facilities to verify compliance, according to four officials as well as letters obtained by Reuters.

It requires customers to grant “access and permission to South African Government Authority’s representative(s)” to verify they are in compliance with South Africa’s defence export regulations.

Officials from South African defence groups Denel and Rheinmetall Denel Munition (RDM) said some of its exports to the Middle East had not been approved since March because of the dispute.

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which account for at least a third of South Africa’s arms exports said they consider the inspections a violation of their sovereignty, according to the sources.

Both countries have been engaged in a deadly war in Yemen which has seen more than 100,000 killed, according to figures by ACLED.

Oman and Algeria have also refused inspections and seen their imports from South Africa blocked, the industry officials added.

“We’ve got one clause that’s disabling us from exporting 25 billion rand ($1.7 billion) worth of value today, right now,” Simphiwe Hamilton, the head of the Aerospace, Maritime and Defence Industries Association of South Africa (AMD), told Reuters.

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The inspections take into consideration a range of criteria, including human rights, regional conflict, risk of diversion, UN Security Council resolutions and national interest, before approving arms export permits.

South Africa has sought to reform its defence industry to ensure human rights compliance since democratic rule was established in 1994 following years of the racist apartheid regime

However, it’s refusal to export arms to Saudi Arabia and the UAE comes as no shock after nearly five-years of a deadly assault on Yemen, where the two allies have spearheaded a coalition against Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

Read more: Labour promises to halt UK arms sales to Israel and Saudi Arabia in election manifesto

The conflict has killed more than 100,000 in the already impoverished Arab state, and has pushed Yemen to the brink of famine.

Earlier this year, Amnesty International accused the UAE of transferring western-supplied weapons to militias on the ground.

The allegation was shortly backed up by a CNN investigation that that showed Saudi Arabia and the UAE had transferred American weapons to Yemeni fighters, violating terms of their arms sales with the United States.

While most EU countries have maintained arms sales to the Saudi Arabia, Germany has halted them over the brutal killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

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