Photograph: Getty Images
Evidence revealed by Amnesty International suggests that UAVs , pilotless military drones– have been used by the Israeli army to target air strikes in Gaza. A new campaign group, West Wales Against Arms, has launched a public call to end drone testing here in Ceredigion linked to the Israeli military. The group, made up of residents concerned about weapons testing in the region, held its first public meeting at the Guildhall in Cardigan on July 14.
This is an issue that has long polarised my local community. Over the years people have been protesting outside Parc Aberporth against the testing of drones here. The reason being is that Israeli-manufactured drones including the Elbit Hermes 450 and Hermes 900 have been test flown from West Wales Airport since 2012. Both models are widely used by the Israeli military, including in operations over Gaza.
Thales UK fly and maintain their Watchkeeper drones for the MOD from West Wales Airport. Thales is the UK branch of Israeli arms company Elbit Systems Ltd (via a subsidiary company U-TacS) and is also in active partnership with Israeli Aerospace Industries (IAI).
Elbit Systems is apartheid Israel's largest arms company. It is privately owned, and provides 80% of the weapons and equipment for Israel's land forces and 85% of the combat drones used by the airforce. The site in Aberporth has been a key location for testing Elbit's Hermes series drones,
Elbit’s Hermes 900 was deployed in Gaza by the IDF in 2014. and Israeli military and industry sources openly attribute the success of these Israeli weapon exports to being ‘combat proven’ in operations against Palestinians that have left many Palestinians dead and are being used in clear breach of what is considered international law.
Elbit Systems are one of the biggest arms companies in the world and the primary supplier of the Watchkeeper drones used by the IDF against Palestinian civilians in the Gaza strip. The company’s headquarters is in Haifa in Israel, their CEO is Bezhalel Machlis who has been at the helm since 2013, overseeing the company as it generated $4.7billion in revenue in 2020.
The Aberporth site has staged trials for the Hermes 900 model drone, the successor to the Hermes 450, one of the most widely used military drones in the world. These drones have been cited by a variety of international Non-Government Organisations for targeting civilians. The Watchkeeper drones are also based on the Hermes models. Elbit Systems boast of the drone’s capacity for surveillance and ‘target acquisition.’
West Wales Airport brands itself as “the UK’s most important test and demonstration area for drones..” but it is important to note that QinetiQ, a major UK defence contractor, runs the MOD Aberporth facility. and develops UAVs (drones) for export to the Israeli military for use in the genocide in Gaza, and the decades long illegal occupation of Palestine and the brutal oppression of Palestinians.
Between 2008 and 2021 QinetiQ received eight export licenses for arms to Israel, including one licence worth more than £14 million .and sends teams abroad with high-tech drones and mock enemy vehicles to run live-fire military training missions.
Elbit Systems have hit the headlines recently due to multiple of their factories and offices being occupied and having production of the lethal drones shut down by Palestine Action, a direct-action focus group that has recently wrongly been proscribed as a terrorist organisation whose primary objective was to shut down Elbit Systems operations in the UK.
West Wales Airport has advertised itself as a ‘privately owned and entirely independent’, however sources have discovered that this claim of independence to be very dubious.
West Wales Airport has been dependent for its development on Welsh Government funding/loans, some funds of which still appear to be current in accounts in 2023. The Welsh Government has also secured funding/loans for West Wales Airport against its freehold title deeds, and land at West Wales Airport was sold, somewhat curiously, by the Welsh Assembly Government to the company in 2009 for the sum of £30,000.
Additionally, Thales UK claims that since 2004 they have invested £12million into West Wales Airport. As of 12 March 2024, Thales UK/MOD have extended their contract with West Wales Airport. The cost of this extension is valued at £6.5 million.
West Wales Airport also brands itself as “the UK’s most important test and demonstration area for drones..” and boast that their teams can deploy “anywhere in the world at short notice” and run mission planning, launches, radar-evading drones, and even simulate missile attacks. This is big business. But it’s also deeply concerning — especially in regions where military action has caused massive civilian casualties.
QinetiQ systems and employees are being used to train Israeli forces during attacks on Gaza. These services may be slipping through UK arms control laws by being classified as “services,” not weapons. QinetiQ is still closely linked to the UK government The question many people are asking is should a British company be profiting from conflict?
In a statement, West Wales Against Arms said: “We are horrified by the genocide in Gaza and do not want West Wales to be part of it. We do not want our skies used to test equipment that helps Israel commit war crimes and kill children.”
Previous Protest at Parc Aberporth
Since October 2023, over 61,000 people have reportedly been killed in Gaza, including thousands of children. The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued applications for arrest warrants against senior Israeli and Hamas leaders for alleged war crimes.
The campaign group’s flyer claims West Wales is becoming increasingly militarised and calls on residents to oppose what it calls “complicity in genocide.”
Ceredigion Palestine Solidarity Campaign recently organised two static protests, at two simultaneous locations, in 18 March. 2024 It was over the Labour-led Welsh government’s complicity in Israel‘s ongoing genocide in Gaza. The details of just how the Labour Party administration is involved are both murky and shocking.
The protest, supported by CND Cymru, called attention to the Welsh Government’s enablement of suppliers and developers of Unmanned Weapons Systems (UAS) to the Israeli military for use in both the genocide in Gaza and the illegally occupied Palestinian territories.
At times, people blocked the road into ParcAberporth technology park: Mock-up coffins were used to visualise the Welsh government’s support for Israel’s war machine. When you realise just why protesters were angry with the Welsh government – you won’t be surprised.
Here’s an up‑to‑date breakdown of Israel’s use of drones in Gaza—how they’re used in surveillance, killing civilians, and destroying property. The information is based on verified reporting and rights group investigations.
1. Precision Drone Strikes on Civilians and Property Modified commercial drones (e.g., DJI Agras and Avata) have been weaponized—used to drop explosives on civilian homes, hospitals, and shelters across Gaza . ‘Human rights groups documented drone attacks that killed entire families, including children and residents running from earlier strikes, such as the El‑Farra family, targeted in their street at night” according to the Middle East Children's Alliance .
A Médecins du Monde office in Deir al‑Balah had been officially marked as safe, yet drone strikes destroyed it, killing at least eight civilians—even though the organization had been “deconflicted” . Local reporting confirms that Israeli drone strikes killed civilians, injuring others near Al‑Aqsa Martyrs Hospital and in Shuja’iyya, warning that drone operations remain active and lethal .
2. Sniper (Quadcopter) Drones for Targeted Shooting Eyewitness accounts describe miniature sniper drones, or quadcopters equipped with guns, allegedly used to shoot civilians in Gaza—including women and children—often in cramped urban spaces .
3. Surveillance, Mapping & Tactical Support Drones are extensively deployed for real-time surveillance, tracking movements and mapping Gaza’s tunnels and neighborhoods. One reported incident revealed a DJI Avata drone monitoring Palestinians being used as human shields in Shujaiya, allowing Israeli forces to clear a school under cover of drone observation
Usage Patterns and Impact
Direct Deaths and Property Destruction
Thousands of civilian deaths—especially children, women, and displaced persons—have been tied to drone-delivered explosive munitions: roadside bombs, suicide drones, and small precision devices Reports show civilian infrastructure, including homes, shelters, hospitals, and school‑turned‑refuges, being destroyed by drones on multiple occasions—even when no military target was identified (e.g., displacement camps and medical offices)
Disproportionate or Intentional Targeting
Amnesty International and other rights groups found strikes on places like the Saint Porphyrius Church and Nuseirat camps killed dozens of civilians (including infants), with drone footage often central to the targeting process—even in highly protected refugee sites DCI-Palestine reported that 37% of casualties during one summer operation were caused by drone attacks alone, indicating a significant share of fatalities attributable to drone weaponry
Summary Overview
In terms of each type of drone and it’s role, function and impact. Armed commercial drones : Carry explosive payloads (e.g. DJI Agras bombs Destroy civilian homes, shelters, hospitals Sniper-style quadcopter drone : Fires small arms at individuals in urban spaces Kill civilians—including women and children, while providing visual intelligence, mapping, and tracking and enabling precision targeting and tactical operations
In summary Drones continue to play a major, direct role in civilian casualties and property destruction across Gaza, many of those killed or displaced were struck while sheltering in homes, camps, or medical facilities. A substantial share of fatalities in certain operations stem from drone strikes, including entire families hit by targeted explosive payloads. Surveillance drones also facilitate operations where civilians are exposed to high risk, including use of forced human shields. While sniper drones shooting single rounds are a newer and more isolated tactic, they nonetheless represent a deliberate weaponization of non-lethal platforms.
It’s clear that drones in the Gaza conflict are far more than surveillance tools. They’re used offensively, to kill, destroy infrastructure, and reinforce military objectives, while frequently hitting civilian targets even in designated safe zones. Evidence suggests the technology is being employed at scale, in ways that disproportionately impact non-combatants.
The Middle East Children's Alliance (MECA) has raised concerns about the use of drones in Israeli attacks on Palestinian territories, particularly regarding the impact on children. MECA has reported that children have been directly targeted and killed in drone strikes, both in their homes and while attempting to flee. They highlight that Israeli officials often boast of the precision of drone strikes, suggesting that the targeting of children is deliberate. MECA's work includes providing aid to families in Gaza, including food, medical care, and psychological support. They also focus on projects like educational programs and community development. The organization has also reported on the impact of drone strikes and other attacks on infrastructure like schools and hospitals, and the resulting trauma experienced by children.
The drone has become a part of the everyday life of Gazans. They wake up in the morning to its noise, and it’s the same noise they hear while trying to sleep. It is always there, to the extent that one might even momentarily forget it is there.
Since their first use in 2000, drones have led to the death of hundreds of Palestinians and have injured thousands more. In addition, they have directly negatively impacted Palestinian psychological and social life, as well as causing a grossly negative impact on education.
While in comparison, the Israeli use of drones to target individuals, public premises, academic institutions, and schools are more intensified than its use in any other place by any other army. Most studies do not include the Israeli use of drones against the Palestinians in their surveys. They only refer to the fact that Israel manufactures drones and uses them, while the consequences of using drones day and night in Gaza are understudied and nearly absent in the field of drones’ studies.
In numbers, civilians killed or injured by drones during the frequent Israeli offensives against Gaza are very high. Moreover, drones in Gaza have a different impact on the lives of the people which have not been properly studied. However, the most striking aspect of the Israeli usage of drones in Gaza is how drones are used to intensify the occupation, to make it cheaper and more profitable as well.
UK government contracts with corporations such as Elbit (and its subsidiaries) which are involved in violations of international law must end immediately as must a two-way arms embargo between the UK and Israel. This would see an end to all dealings with Elbit and other Israeli weapons companies, and an end to all licences for UK arms exports to Israel.
Since 2015, the UK has licensed at least £500 million worth of military exports to Israel. Even though the government has suspended a small number of arms licences, there are still hundreds remaining. The use of drones as tested in the skies of West Wales to conduct lethal strikes, causing civilian casualties, and the continuing complicity of the UK, in Israel’s campaign of genocide in Gaza , must now come to and end.
Thankfully there is growing opposition to drone testing here in West Wales, due to concerns about its use in weapons development, what is happening in Gaza and the potential impact on the local community.
There will be a peaceful vigil this coming Wednesday 6/8/25 from 1pm till 2 pm outside Aberporth MOD to highlight what is happening. It is critical in the global mass movement of solidarity with the Palestinian people that we continue to speak out.
In addition to all this the US military is trying to build a huge 27 dish radar array in Wales and plans to use it to militarily dominate all of space! I also support the PARC Against DARC campaign which has been set up to stop DARC! Pembrokeshire Against the Radar,
Sign their petition here :https://bit.ly/4bgVUMh Lett the MoD know that you oppose DARC on the feedback form here: https://www.gov.uk/.../deep-space-advanced-radar.. And please follow PARC Against DARC on their social media pages! Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/parcagainstdarc Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/parcagainstdarc Twitter: https://twitter.com/parcagainstdarc
Sources and information from :
War on Want
Drone Wars https://dronewars.net/
Middle East Children's Alliance https://www.mecaforpeace.org/
