Germany extends Saudi arms exports ban for another six months

PanARMENIAN.Net - Germany has extended a ban on arms exports to Saudi Arabia for another six months, a government spokesman said, according to Al Jazeera.

The ban, imposed after the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, has been criticised by European allies since it put a question mark over billions of euros of military orders, including a 10 billion pound ($13.27bn) deal to sell 48 Eurofighter Typhoon jets to Riyadh that would be led by Britain's BAE Systems.

"The ban will be extended for a further six months to September 30," read an e-mailed statement by government spokesman Steffen Seibert on Thursday, March 28. "Over this period no new export applications will be approved."

In October, Germany imposed a unilateral halt on weapons export to Saudi Arabia after the Washington Post columnist critical of Riyadh was killed by a Saudi hit team in the kingdom's consulate in Istanbul.