Philip Hammond says he wants UK to sell even more weapons to Saudi Arabia

The Foreign Secretary said the weapons were being used in Yemen

Saudi Arabia is the second largest importer, with the country being responsible for 7 per cent of all global imports. (AFP)

Britain should sell more weapons to the Saudi Arabian regime despite the fact they are being used by the country as part of its military operations in Yemen, the Foreign Secretary has said.

Philip Hammond said he was aware that human rights violations by Saudi Arabian forces operating in the country had been reported but said the Saudis denied these allegations.

Saudi Arabia has been blockading Yemen since March this year and is launching airstrikes in the country’s territory.

Aid agencies say the country’s blockade has left 20 million Yemenis, 80 per cent of the population, in urgent need for food, water, and medical aid, and that a humanitarian disaster is unfolding in the country.

Other atrocities reported include the Saudi bombing of a M​​édecins Sans Fronti​​ères​ hospital in Saada province, according to the international charity.

Asked on the BBC’s Newsnight programme about the subject of arms sales to the regime, Mr Hammond replied that the arms sales helped create “British jobs”.

“We’d always like to do more business, more British exports, more British jobs and in this case very high end engineering jobs protected and created by our diplomacy abroad,” he said. “I know that some of them are being used in Yemen, that doesn’t fall foul of the export licensing criteria.

“Those weapons are being used in Yemen, the important thing is they are being used legally in an international armed conflict. There have been accusations of breaches of international humanitarian law. We regularly intervene with the Saudis to encourage them to be transparent with us.

Foreign secretary Philip Hammond (PA)

“The Saudis deny there have been any breaches of international humanitarian law. Obviously that denial alone is not enough, we need to see proper investigations, we need to work with the Saudi’s to establish that international humanitarian law has been complied with.”

The British Government approves and licenses all sales of arms and other military equipment to foreign countries and has the power to revoke permission for exporters.

Saudi is leading a coalition of Arab countries to intervene on the side of the internationally-recognised Yemeni government, which has been challenged by another group, known as the Houthi insurgency.

That group now controls significant parts of the country’s territory in the West, including its largest city and capital Sana’a.

It is not the first time Britain’s commercial relationship with Saudi Arabia has come under scrutiny. The Ministry of Justice cancelled a contract with Saudi Arabia’s prison system in October after sustained pressure from the Justice Secretary Michael Gove and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.

The £5.9m deal would have provided prison services for the country’s penal system, where beheading and flogging are still in use as punishments.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn alleged in July that British arms sales to the Middle East were fuelling the rise of groups like Isis and were a “contributory factor” in regional conflicts.

In 2013 the Independent reported that the UK made £12.bn from arms sales to repressive regimes around the world, most of which are in the Middle East and Africa.