NGOs appeal to federal court against drone purchase
Keystone-SDA
On Tuesday, several NGOs filed a complaint with the Federal Supreme Court for denial of justice and violation of constitutional law in the purchase contract for the Israeli drone reconnaissance system ADS-15. They denounce the illegality of the contract.
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The High Court of the Canton of Bern had previously rejected a request from the NGOs for precautionary evidence regarding the contract between the Swiss government and the Israeli defence contractor Elbit Systems, as was reported in a press release on Tuesday.
The aim of the complaint was to establish the nullity of the contract, which de facto supports the Israeli army. By continuing its contracts with the Israeli manufacturer Elbit, Switzerland is doing business with a company that supplies weapons that are used in proven violations of international law, argue the NGOs.
The complainants are a Palestinian couple, the group Switzerland Without an Army (Gsoa), the Swiss League for Human Rights and the Swiss Lawyers’ Association for Palestine (ASAP). They want the drone purchase agreement with Israel to be cancelled due to “immorality, violation of public law and international law”.
Translated from German by DeepL/jdp
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