In a dramatic turn of events at the International Defense Industry Exhibition (MSPO) in Kielce, Poland, this past week, Israeli arms company representatives faced police questioning after a legal complaint accused them of complicity in what leading experts now call genocide in Gaza. The complaint, filed by the Polish-Palestinian Justice Initiative (KAKTUS) on September 3, 2025, targeted four Israeli defense firms, including Elbit Systems and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, for their participation in the annual arms fair. The move sent shockwaves through the international community and underscored mounting pressure on states and companies linked to Israel’s military operations in the besieged Palestinian territory.
According to KAKTUS, Poland, as a signatory to the Genocide Convention, the Rome Statute, and the Arms Trade Treaty, has a legal obligation to prevent complicity in atrocities. The group’s filing stated, “Poland, as a signatory to the Genocide Convention, the Rome Statute and the Arms Trade Treaty, cannot promote and legitimize entities whose technologies are directly used to attack civilians in Gaza.” The complaint further argued that marketing weapons as “battle-tested” at the fair amounted to celebrating their use against Palestinian civilians—a claim that drew immediate attention from both activists and authorities.
Polish police responded swiftly. Representatives from Elbit Systems and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems were summoned for questioning, though reports indicate that some had already left the country before officers could reach them. By Friday, September 5, all Israeli booths at the MSPO fair stood empty—a striking image that activists hailed as a small but significant breach in what they described as Israel’s “wall of impunity.”
The week’s events were not limited to legal maneuvers. Earlier, protesters disrupted the exhibition by spilling a blood-red substance at Elbit’s stand, symbolizing the bloodshed in Gaza. The demonstrators were briefly detained and charged with property damage before being released, but their message was clear: Poland and the international community can no longer turn a blind eye to the consequences of arms sales and military support for Israel’s campaign in Gaza.
Human rights groups had already urged Polish authorities not to host Israeli companies at MSPO, citing Poland’s legal and moral duties under international law. Their concerns center on the devastating toll of Israel’s military operations in Gaza, where more than 64,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 2023, according to local authorities. The scale of destruction and loss of life has prompted growing calls for accountability—and, as of September 1, 2025, a landmark declaration by the International Association of Genocide Scholars. The world’s foremost body on mass atrocities concluded that Israel’s actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of genocide under the UN convention, a finding that has reverberated across diplomatic and legal circles.
This sentiment was echoed at The Genocide Tribunal, a two-day event held in the United Kingdom this week to examine Israel’s war crimes in Gaza and the UK’s role in the ongoing crisis. Richard Falk, former U.N. special rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, addressed the gathering with a blunt assessment: “Israel’s military campaign in Gaza could not have continued without global complicity.” Falk, who also presides over The Gaza Tribunal—a separate initiative set to conclude in Istanbul in late October—emphasized the international responsibility of states like the UK. “(The U.K. tribunal) places for the first time a proper emphasis on the complicity of a major, liberal, democratic country,” he said. “I cannot overstate the importance of such an undertaking, because without that complicity, Israel could not have done what it is doing.”
Falk did not mince words in his criticism of Western governments. He described the UK as a “shameful government” and accused Washington of acting as “an agent of the destructive policies being carried out in Gaza.” The former U.N. official warned that the situation in Gaza was deteriorating rapidly, with famine formally declared in August 2025 by the U.N.-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC). “If the world waits much longer, it will have waited too long, and history will remember the failure to meet this salient crisis of our time,” Falk cautioned.
Other speakers at the tribunal reinforced these themes. Eyal Weizman, head of the London-based research group Forensic Architecture, argued that denying genocide “paves the way for genocide.” He described the devastation in Gaza as unprecedented, claiming it aims at eradication “under the guise of reorganization.” Neve Gordon, a professor of international law and human rights at Queen Mary University of London, criticized the UK government for ignoring testimony from British-Palestinian citizens while maintaining open doors for Israeli voices. “A genocide is carried out by denying genocide,” Gordon asserted, noting Britain’s continued arms sales and intelligence support to Israel.
Shahd Hammouri, a Palestinian academic at the University of Kent, added that London supported Israel’s campaign despite being “fully aware of what was happening.” The tribunal’s focus on international complicity highlighted a broader debate about the responsibilities of states and corporations in the face of mass atrocities—a debate that is now playing out in courtrooms and parliaments across Europe and beyond.
The war in Gaza reached its 700th day on Friday, September 5, 2025, a grim milestone marked by ongoing violence and humanitarian catastrophe. Israel’s attacks have killed at least 64,300 Palestinians, according to local authorities, leaving much of the enclave in ruins and its population facing famine. The crisis has also prompted unprecedented legal action at the highest levels: in November 2024, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Meanwhile, Israel faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice, further intensifying scrutiny of its conduct and the support it receives from allies.
For many observers, the events in Poland and the UK this week represent a turning point in the global response to the war in Gaza. The legal complaint against Israeli arms firms in Kielce, the empty booths at MSPO, and the powerful testimony at The Genocide Tribunal all signal a growing willingness to confront the uncomfortable realities of international complicity. Whether these actions will translate into concrete changes in policy—or meaningful justice for the victims—remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: the world is watching, and the calls for accountability are only growing louder.
As the humanitarian crisis in Gaza deepens and legal challenges mount, the spotlight on arms trade, state responsibility, and the enforcement of international law has never been brighter. The choices made by governments and corporations in the coming weeks may shape not only the future of Gaza, but also the global norms that define justice and accountability in an increasingly interconnected world.