Britain is helping to train the militaries of over a dozen countries involved in serious breaches of human rights abuses, it has been revealed.
Seventeen countries on the Foreign Office’s own human rights watch list, defined as states where the UK is “particularly concerned about human rights issues” received instruction from the British armed forces from 2018-2020.
The Independent reported at the weekend that the UK was as recently as March providing training to the armed forces of Belarus, a dictatorship where pro-democracy protesters have faced repression in recent months.
Download the new Independent Premium app
Sharing the full story, not just the headlines
But ministers have now admitted that from 2018-2020, the UK armed forces provided training to states on the FCO’s own watch list: Afghanistan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, China, Colombia, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Maldives, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Zimbabwe.
The UK provided sniper commander courses to soldiers in Bahrain, which cracked down on peaceful dissent in 2018, virtually eliminating all opposition to its government, according to NGO Human Rights Watch.
It also trained Saudi Arabian forces in fighter jet and tactical weapons use, while the country was engaged in an aerial bombardment in Yemen that the UN and aid agencies says has created a humanitarian catastrophe.
Egyptian forces were given a commando training course, while in 2018-19 the UK helped train China’s officer corps.
Britain is in fact training the militaries of the majority of countries on its own human rights watch list: 17 out of 30 on the so-called “human rights priority countries” register.
Other countries with poor human rights records not on the UK’s watch list were also given training, including Oman, Qatar, Turkey, the UAE, and the Philippines.
The figures were revealed in response to a written parliamentary question by Labour MP Sam Tarry.
The latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox
The Ministry of Defence says it keeps any training it does with other countries under review.
Andrew Smith of Campaign Against Arms Trade said: “Many of these armies have appalling human rights records and have been linked to brutal oppression as well as international aggression.
1/50 26 August 2020
People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad
AFP via Getty
2/50 25 August 2020
An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel
Reuters
3/50 24 August 2020
Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai
AFP via Getty
4/50 23 August 2020
People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India
Reuters
5/50 22 August 2020
Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California
AP
6/50 21 August 2020
Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel’s plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank
AFP via Getty
7/50 20 August 2020
A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu
AFP via Getty
8/50 19 August 2020
A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin
AFP via Getty
9/50 18 August 2020
Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha
AFP via Getty
10/50 17 August 2020
Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories
AFP via Getty
11/50 16 August 2020
Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland
AP
12/50 15 August 2020
Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk
AFP via Getty
13/50 14 August 2020
AlphaTauri’s driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix
AFP via Getty
14/50 13 August 2020
Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio
AFP via Getty
15/50 12 August 2020
Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya
AFP via Getty
16/50 11 August 2020
French Prime Minister Jean Castex is helped by a member of staff to put a protective suit on prior to his visit at the CHU hospital in Montpellier
AFP via Getty
17/50 10 August 2020
Locals harvest their potatoes as Mount Sinabung spews volcanic ash in Karo, North Sumatra province, Indonesia
Antara Foto/Reuters
18/50 9 August 2020
Doves fly over the Peace Statue at Nagasaki Peace Park during the memorial ceremony held for the 75th anniversary of the atomic bombing
EPA
19/50 8 August 2020
Anti-government protesters try to remove concrete wall that installed by security forces to prevent protesters reaching the Parliament square, during a protest against the political elites and the government after this week’s deadly explosion in Beirut
AP
20/50 7 August 2020
A protester throws a stone towards Israeli forces in the village of Turmus Aya, north of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, following a march by Palestinians against the building of Israeli settlements
AFP via Getty
21/50 6 August 2020
A woman yells as soldiers block a road for French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit the Gemmayzeh neighborhood. The area in Beirut suffered extensive damage from the explosion at the seaport
AP
22/50 5 August 2020
Damage at the site of Tuesday’s blast in Beirut’s port area, Lebanon
Reuters
23/50 4 August 2020
A large explosion in the Lebanese capital Beirut. The blast, which rattled entire buildings and broke glass, was felt in several parts of the city
AFP via Getty
24/50 3 August 2020
A general view shows the new road bridge in Genoa, Italy ahead of its official inauguration, after it was rebuilt following its collapse on August 14, 2018 which killed 43 people
Reuters
25/50 2 August 2020
Empty stall spaces are seen hours before a citywide curfew is introduced in Melbourne, Australia
EPA
26/50 1 August 2020
People take part in a demonstration by the initiative “Querdenken-711” with the slogan “the end of the pandemic – the day of freedom” to protest against the current measurements to curb the spread of COVID-19 in Berlin, Germany
AFP via Getty
27/50 31 July 2020
Pilgrims circumambulating around the Kaaba, the holiest shrine in the Grand mosque in Mecca. Muslim pilgrims converged today on Saudi Arabia’s Mount Arafat for the climax of this year’s hajj, the smallest in modern times and a sharp contrast to the massive crowds of previous years
Saudi Ministry of Media/AFP
28/50 30 July 2020
The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission lifts off at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. The mission is part of the USA’s largest moon to Mars exploration. Nasa will attempt to establish a sustained human presence on and around the moon by 2028 through their Artemis programme
EPA
29/50 29 July 2020
A woman refreshes herself in a outdoor pool in summer temperatures in Ehingen, Germany
dpa via AP
30/50 28 July 2020
Malaysia’s former prime minister Najib Razak speaks to the media after he was found guilty in his corruption trial in Kuala Lumpur
AFP via Getty
31/50 27 July 2020
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un poses for a photograph after conferring commemorative pistols to leading commanding officers of the armed forces on the 67th anniversary of the “Day of Victory in the Great Fatherland Liberation War”. Which marks the signing of the Korean War armistice
KCNA via Reuters
32/50 26 July 2020
Federal officers launch tear gas at a group of demonstrators during a Black Lives Matter protest outside the Portland Courthouse
AP
33/50 25 July 2020
Rescue forces in action after an ultralight aircraft crashed into a house in Wesel, Germany
EPA
34/50 24 July 2020
Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan (C) and invited guests attending Friday prayers at Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque during the official opening ceremony of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul
Turkish Presidential Press Service/AFP/Getty
35/50 23 July 2020
Federal officers arrest a protester after she crossed a fence line set up around the Mark O. Hatfield U.S. Courthouse in Portland, Oregon. State and city elected officials have called for the federal officers to leave Portland as clashes between protesters and federal police continue to escalate
Getty
36/50 22 July 2020
Fire burns near the village of Galataki as authorities evacuate the place near Corinth, Greece. More than 250 firefighters, backed by water-dropping aircraft, were struggling Wednesday to contain a large wildfire fanned by strong winds that has forced the evacuation of five settlements in southern Greece
AP
37/50 21 July 2020
A Black Lives Matter protester carries an American flag as teargas fills the air outside the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse in Portland, Oregon
AP
38/50 20 July 2020
A trader decorates a camel with Henna at a cattle market set up for the upcoming Muslim festival Eid al-Adha also called “Festival of the Sacrifice”, in Rawalpindi
AFP via Getty
39/50 19 July 2020
The Milky Way galaxy is seen in the sky above the International Car Forest of the Last Church in Goldfield, Nevada. The roadside attraction, created in 2002 by Mark Rippie, has over 36 automobiles including cars, trucks, vans and buses that have been balanced on their ends or stacked on top one of another
AFP via Getty
40/50 18 July 2020
Revellers take part in the annual Gay Pride parade, also called Christopher Street Day in Frankfurt
Reuters
41/50 17 July 2020
Airplanes of the Scandinavian Airshow draw a heart in the sky, above the Turning Torso building in Malmo, Sweden
TT News Agency/Reuters
42/50 16 July 2020
Farmers protest outside the Indonesian Parliament against the cancellation of an ‘omnibus bill’ that aims to revise dozens of existing laws to ease the way for investment in Southeast Asia’s largest economy in Jakarta
Reuters
43/50 15 July 2020
Flooding in Sunamganj. Almost four million people have been hit by monsoon floods in South Asia, with a third of Bangladesh already underwater from some of the heaviest rains in a decade
AFP via Getty
44/50 14 July 2020
Second Republican infantry guard regiment take part in the annual Bastille Day military ceremony on the Place de la Concorde in Paris
AFP via Getty
45/50 13 July 2020
A man walks his dog through thick sea foam blowing ashore during a storm in Seapoint, Cape Town, South Africa
EPA
46/50 12 July 2020
Security forces on the outskirts of Amritsar take part in Van Mahotsav, an annual tree-planting festival in India
AFP via Getty
47/50 11 July 2020
People covered with coloured powder enjoy music during the Holi festival in Minsk, Belarus
EPA
48/50 10 July 2020
A demonstrator during clashes following the funeral of 29-year-old Palestinian Ibrahim Abou Yacoub, who was killed by Israeli forces, in the village of Kifl Hares, south of the West Bank city of Nablus
AFP via Getty
49/50 9 July 2020
The sun rises in Timmendorfer Strand, northern Germany
AP
50/50 8 July 2020
Portraits of healthcare workers are pasted on the Opera Bastille, designed by Anne-Christine Poujoulat, to pay tribute to caregivers during the Covid-19 pandemic in Paris
Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP/Getty
1/50 26 August 2020
People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad
AFP via Getty
2/50 25 August 2020
An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel
Reuters
3/50 24 August 2020
Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai
AFP via Getty
4/50 23 August 2020
People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India
Reuters
5/50 22 August 2020
Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California
AP
6/50 21 August 2020
Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel’s plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank
AFP via Getty
7/50 20 August 2020
A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu
AFP via Getty
8/50 19 August 2020
A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin
AFP via Getty
9/50 18 August 2020
Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha
AFP via Getty
10/50 17 August 2020
Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories
AFP via Getty
11/50 16 August 2020
Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland
AP
12/50 15 August 2020
Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk
AFP via Getty
13/50 14 August 2020
AlphaTauri’s driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix
AFP via Getty
14/50 13 August 2020
Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio
AFP via Getty
15/50 12 August 2020
Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya
AFP via Getty
16/50 11 August 2020
French Prime Minister Jean Castex is helped by a member of staff to put a protective suit on prior to his visit at the CHU hospital in Montpellier
AFP via Getty
17/50 10 August 2020
Locals harvest their potatoes as Mount Sinabung spews volcanic ash in Karo, North Sumatra province, Indonesia
Antara Foto/Reuters
18/50 9 August 2020
Doves fly over the Peace Statue at Nagasaki Peace Park during the memorial ceremony held for the 75th anniversary of the atomic bombing
EPA
19/50 8 August 2020
Anti-government protesters try to remove concrete wall that installed by security forces to prevent protesters reaching the Parliament square, during a protest against the political elites and the government after this week’s deadly explosion in Beirut
AP
20/50 7 August 2020
A protester throws a stone towards Israeli forces in the village of Turmus Aya, north of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, following a march by Palestinians against the building of Israeli settlements
AFP via Getty
21/50 6 August 2020
A woman yells as soldiers block a road for French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit the Gemmayzeh neighborhood. The area in Beirut suffered extensive damage from the explosion at the seaport
AP
22/50 5 August 2020
Damage at the site of Tuesday’s blast in Beirut’s port area, Lebanon
Reuters
23/50 4 August 2020
A large explosion in the Lebanese capital Beirut. The blast, which rattled entire buildings and broke glass, was felt in several parts of the city
AFP via Getty
24/50 3 August 2020
A general view shows the new road bridge in Genoa, Italy ahead of its official inauguration, after it was rebuilt following its collapse on August 14, 2018 which killed 43 people
Reuters
25/50 2 August 2020
Empty stall spaces are seen hours before a citywide curfew is introduced in Melbourne, Australia
EPA
26/50 1 August 2020
People take part in a demonstration by the initiative “Querdenken-711” with the slogan “the end of the pandemic – the day of freedom” to protest against the current measurements to curb the spread of COVID-19 in Berlin, Germany
AFP via Getty
27/50 31 July 2020
Pilgrims circumambulating around the Kaaba, the holiest shrine in the Grand mosque in Mecca. Muslim pilgrims converged today on Saudi Arabia’s Mount Arafat for the climax of this year’s hajj, the smallest in modern times and a sharp contrast to the massive crowds of previous years
Saudi Ministry of Media/AFP
28/50 30 July 2020
The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission lifts off at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. The mission is part of the USA’s largest moon to Mars exploration. Nasa will attempt to establish a sustained human presence on and around the moon by 2028 through their Artemis programme
EPA
29/50 29 July 2020
A woman refreshes herself in a outdoor pool in summer temperatures in Ehingen, Germany
dpa via AP
30/50 28 July 2020
Malaysia’s former prime minister Najib Razak speaks to the media after he was found guilty in his corruption trial in Kuala Lumpur
AFP via Getty
31/50 27 July 2020
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un poses for a photograph after conferring commemorative pistols to leading commanding officers of the armed forces on the 67th anniversary of the “Day of Victory in the Great Fatherland Liberation War”. Which marks the signing of the Korean War armistice
KCNA via Reuters
32/50 26 July 2020
Federal officers launch tear gas at a group of demonstrators during a Black Lives Matter protest outside the Portland Courthouse
AP
33/50 25 July 2020
Rescue forces in action after an ultralight aircraft crashed into a house in Wesel, Germany
EPA
34/50 24 July 2020
Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan (C) and invited guests attending Friday prayers at Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque during the official opening ceremony of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul
Turkish Presidential Press Service/AFP/Getty
35/50 23 July 2020
Federal officers arrest a protester after she crossed a fence line set up around the Mark O. Hatfield U.S. Courthouse in Portland, Oregon. State and city elected officials have called for the federal officers to leave Portland as clashes between protesters and federal police continue to escalate
Getty
36/50 22 July 2020
Fire burns near the village of Galataki as authorities evacuate the place near Corinth, Greece. More than 250 firefighters, backed by water-dropping aircraft, were struggling Wednesday to contain a large wildfire fanned by strong winds that has forced the evacuation of five settlements in southern Greece
AP
37/50 21 July 2020
A Black Lives Matter protester carries an American flag as teargas fills the air outside the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse in Portland, Oregon
AP
38/50 20 July 2020
A trader decorates a camel with Henna at a cattle market set up for the upcoming Muslim festival Eid al-Adha also called “Festival of the Sacrifice”, in Rawalpindi
AFP via Getty
39/50 19 July 2020
The Milky Way galaxy is seen in the sky above the International Car Forest of the Last Church in Goldfield, Nevada. The roadside attraction, created in 2002 by Mark Rippie, has over 36 automobiles including cars, trucks, vans and buses that have been balanced on their ends or stacked on top one of another
AFP via Getty
40/50 18 July 2020
Revellers take part in the annual Gay Pride parade, also called Christopher Street Day in Frankfurt
Reuters
41/50 17 July 2020
Airplanes of the Scandinavian Airshow draw a heart in the sky, above the Turning Torso building in Malmo, Sweden
TT News Agency/Reuters
42/50 16 July 2020
Farmers protest outside the Indonesian Parliament against the cancellation of an ‘omnibus bill’ that aims to revise dozens of existing laws to ease the way for investment in Southeast Asia’s largest economy in Jakarta
Reuters
43/50 15 July 2020
Flooding in Sunamganj. Almost four million people have been hit by monsoon floods in South Asia, with a third of Bangladesh already underwater from some of the heaviest rains in a decade
AFP via Getty
44/50 14 July 2020
Second Republican infantry guard regiment take part in the annual Bastille Day military ceremony on the Place de la Concorde in Paris
AFP via Getty
45/50 13 July 2020
A man walks his dog through thick sea foam blowing ashore during a storm in Seapoint, Cape Town, South Africa
EPA
46/50 12 July 2020
Security forces on the outskirts of Amritsar take part in Van Mahotsav, an annual tree-planting festival in India
AFP via Getty
47/50 11 July 2020
People covered with coloured powder enjoy music during the Holi festival in Minsk, Belarus
EPA
48/50 10 July 2020
A demonstrator during clashes following the funeral of 29-year-old Palestinian Ibrahim Abou Yacoub, who was killed by Israeli forces, in the village of Kifl Hares, south of the West Bank city of Nablus
AFP via Getty
49/50 9 July 2020
The sun rises in Timmendorfer Strand, northern Germany
AP
50/50 8 July 2020
Portraits of healthcare workers are pasted on the Opera Bastille, designed by Anne-Christine Poujoulat, to pay tribute to caregivers during the Covid-19 pandemic in Paris
Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP/Getty
“By training and collaborating with despots, dictatorships, and human rights abusers the UK risks making itself complicit in the abuses that are being inflicted.
“For far too long, successive UK governments have talked about the importance of human rights and democracy while arming, supporting, and strengthening authoritarian regimes across the world.
“There must be an end to the hypocrisy and a full review of which forces the UK has trained and if they have been linked to human rights abuses.”
