MILITARY INTELLIGENCE

UK's double standards means death for many

UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw provoked fury among members of the ruling Labour Party when he announced new export guidelines which allowed the sale of parts of military equipment to countries such as Indonesia and Israel.
'These new criteria allow arms components to go to a whole host of countries where human rights abuses are common,' Rebecca Peters of the International Action Network on Small Arms said.
"The government has put lives at risk by setting up false and dangerous double standards. Whether a machine gun comes in pieces or ready-made, the suffering it can cause in the wrong hands is just the same," said Justin Forsyth, Oxfam's director of policy.