CAMPAIGNERS are taking legal action over Britain’s licensing of arms sales to Saudi Arabia for use in its war in Yemen, arguing that it breaches international law.

A three-day judicial review starts today at the High Court in London.

Since the war began in 2015, the government has licensed over £23 billion worth of arms to the Saudi regime, including aircraft and bombs, and more in total to the kingdom’s coalition.

During this time, there have been a reported 8,983 civilian deaths with air strikes hitting hospitals, funerals, weddings and residential homes.

The arms sales have contributed to breaches of international humanitarian law and caused one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters, according to the Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT).

CAAT previously won a case against the government after the Court of Appeal ruled that the arms sales were “irrational and therefore unlawful.” But a review by then international trade secretary Liz Truss led to the resumption of sales, arguing that any breaches of international law were “isolated events.”

CAAT’s Emily Apple said that government’s argument is “total nonsense and deeply offensive to all the Yemeni people who’ve had their lives destroyed by UK weapons.”

She said: “This is a government that cares more about profit than war crimes and the deaths of civilians.

“We are bringing this case in solidarity with all the Yemeni people whose lives have been devastated by the UK arms trade.

“Given the Court of Appeal’s previous ruling, we should not have to be in court again.

“But it’s clear that Liz Truss thought she could pay lip service to reviewing these sales by conjuring a loophole that, given the evidence, is nothing but a flimsy pretence to continue lining the pockets of arms dealers at the expense of people’s lives.”

Oxfam peace and conflict adviser Martin Butcher, who authored a report examining the human impact of arms sales in Yemen, said: “In Yemen, devastating attacks on civilians have been commonplace, leading to death and injury, and forcing millions of people to flee their homes.

“While all parties to the conflict have repeatedly harmed civilians, we know that the air strikes are responsible for a large proportion of the attacks.

“That's why it’s essential that the legality of UK arms sales is examined and arms sales must be immediately stopped.”