French groups seek court order to block Elbit Systems shipment

NIDAL, ASER and JURDI on Friday petitioned the Paris Administrative Court to block a shipment of precision gearboxes destined for Israeli defense contractor Elbit Systems Land, demanding judicial intervention to halt what they described as a potential violation of France’s international law obligations regarding military exports.

Emergency legal bid

The Franco-Palestinian association NIDAL, human rights association ASER and Jurists for Respect for International Law filed the application under an expedited procedure to protect fundamental freedoms, the groups said in a statement. They asked the emergency judge to order authorities to suspend the shipment, verify the classification of the goods, disclose whether an export license had been issued and identify the end user. The legal challenge targets the French state’s "failure to act" in overseeing the export, according to the petition.

Civil society intervention

The court filing follows reports that Mijno Precision Gearing SAS, a Saint-Etienne-based company, attempted to ship planetary gearboxes intended for military vehicles to Elbit Systems Land. The consignment was initially scheduled to depart on an Air France flight on Oct. 8 but was not loaded following alerts from civil society groups and mobilization by trade unions at Roissy airport. "Precision components manufactured in France cannot be delivered to an entity whose activities are exclusively military without effective state oversight. It was employees and activists who prevented the first departure. It is now up to the state, or failing that, the judge, to ensure compliance with the law," the associations said.

State liability concerns

The shipment is now slated to depart from Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle Airport on Saturday aboard an El Al flight, the associations noted. Allowing the export to proceed would make France liable for facilitating military transfers without adequate oversight, they argued, emphasizing that only judicial or state intervention could ensure adherence to international humanitarian law obligations.