Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
Amnesty International, the Human Rights League and some other organizations have filed a criminal complaint in a civil suit against Belgian arms manufacturer FN Herstal. They accuse the company owned by the Walloon government of continuing to export weapons to Saudi Arabia based on licenses revoked by the Belgian Council of State.
In statements to the Belgian news agency, Amnesty confirmed the existence of a criminal complaint after L-Post published the news.
  The League for Human Rights and Action for Peace are also involved. "FN Herstal has risked complicity in the war crimes committed by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen," Amnesty International wrote in a report published last month.
It added that the complaint was submitted to an examining magistrate in Liège in January. According to Amnesty International, FN exports weapons to Saudi Arabia on the basis of licenses that have been "abolished by the Walloon Region" or "abolished by the State Council". In this way, it continues to provide governments with weapons that they can use to commit violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, the organization explained.
FN Herstal responded to the news, saying it conducts its operations with the utmost respect for applicable regional, federal and European standards and regulations. Regarding exports, "FN Herstal states that none of the military equipment, in any form, leaves Belgian territory without an integrated export license granted by the Walloon government". The company added that each license is also accompanied by a certificate confirming who is the sole user of the exported components.