# Richard Hermer: the Attorney General whose consent the charges required, and his Israel record > Richard Hermer became Attorney General in July 2024, and the Brize Norton charges needed personal consent from a law officer. His public statements and official actions on Israel are collected here. - URL: https://www.brizenortonfiles.com/articles/richard-hermer-attorney-general-israel-record - Published: 2026-11-08 - Author: Investigations Desk, The Brize Norton Files - Topics: Political links, The law ## Key points - Richard Hermer became Attorney General on 5 July 2024. The National Security Act charge against the Brize Norton accused could only proceed with the personal consent of the Attorney General or the Solicitor General. - At the Jewish Labour Movement's annual conference in 2025, Hermer said he wanted to be 'crystal clear' that condemning Hamas while criticising the Israeli government is not to suggest any moral equivalence between the two. - Novara Media reports that Hermer was noted as a key influence on the 2 September 2024 arms export decision, which critics say had loopholes, including an exception for F-35 parts. - The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians wrote to Hermer's office asking what steps the government was taking on torture of Palestinian detainees. Novara Media reports that, almost a month after the office's 20-day target, the ICJP was still waiting for a reply. Richard Hermer was noted as a key influence on the government's arms export decision of 2 September 2024, two months after he became Attorney General, according to Novara Media. ## Who is Richard Hermer? Richard Hermer, Lord Hermer KC, is a human rights lawyer who has represented detainees in Guantanamo Bay. The British right criticised him for his role in winning compensation for torture victims (LBC), and some welcomed his appointment as Attorney General on the basis of those principles. He was previously a member of RSY-Netzer, a Reform Jewish Zionist youth movement, which he says "shaped his worldview and commitment to justice" (Jewish News). Nothing in the record below links that background to a decision. ## What is his legal role in the Brize Norton charges? The Attorney General is one of the law officers who can give the personal consent that the National Security Act requires before proceedings for a section 4 offence can start. The consent is a separate public-interest safeguard. It is not a rubber stamp for the Crown Prosecution Service's charging decision, and it cannot be delegated to prosecutors. The requirement applies to the section 4 charge and to the conspiracy count. The reporting used for this profile does not say which law officer gave consent in the Brize Norton case. The charges could only proceed once that consent was in place. ## What has he said about Israel and Gaza? Middle East Eye reported that "Hermer has been vocal on issues relating to Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories." He was "among eight prominent Jewish lawyers who wrote a letter urging Israel to remember its 'international obligations' during its military offensive in Gaza". The letter described "7 October as a war crime but emphasis[ing] that Israel's response must comply with international law". At the Jewish Labour Movement's annual conference in 2025, he said he wanted to be "crystal clear" that condemning Hamas while at the same time criticising the Israeli government "is not to suggest for one moment that there is any form of moral equivalence between the two." He added that he disagrees with any suggestion that "[S]omehow you have to pick one side or the other. Or [...] you can't love being in Israel, but can't be deeply concerned about the plight of Palestinians... That is absolutely not the world I want to be in." (Jewish News) Jewish Voice for Liberation reports that Hermer, defending his impartiality, said: "I have dear family members currently serving in the IDF." The Jewish Chronicle has been critical from the other direction. It suggested that he "possess[es] a brilliant mind and still lack[s] basic judgment", and noted how he has compared right-wing politicians to Nazis. ## What was his role in the 2024 arms export decision? On 2 September 2024, the government suspended around 30 export licences to Israel, because there was a clear risk the equipment could be used in serious breaches of the laws of war. Hermer had become Attorney General two months earlier. Childs reports that critics say the policy was full of loopholes and exceptions. He also reports that "Hermer told the foreign office he would not approve the ban unless there was certainty over which weapons would break international law." Childs quotes: "Most notably, the ban didn't include parts for F-35 fighter jets which have been used by Israel to kill civilians in Gaza." The government's argument for the F-35 exception was that stopping parts would disrupt the whole international F-35 programme, because parts go into a shared pool used by every country that flies the jet, including Israel. Al-Haq and the Global Legal Action Network challenged the exception through judicial review. The High Court ruled it lawful on 30 June 2025, and the Court of Appeal refused permission to appeal in November 2025. ## Has the Attorney General's office responded to critics? The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) wrote to Hermer "asking what steps the government was taking to prevent Israel from torturing Palestinian detainees and how UK residents who have served in the Israeli military would be investigated for potential war crimes". The ICJP had also criticised the government's position on detainee mistreatment as "a gross understatement and obfuscation of the reality of Israel's systemic use of torture". Childs notes that the office "aims to respond to correspondence within 20 days. It missed the deadline and the policy paper was published one day after the time limit was up. Almost a month later, the ICJP is still waiting." The reporting does not record a reply to the letter. It also notes that, despite Hermer's past work on torture cases, he has said little about Israel's treatment of Palestinian prisoners. For the hearings so far, see the [timeline of the case](https://www.brizenortonfiles.com/articles/brize-norton-case-timeline). Earlier findings on Gaza, published before the protest, are in [the Gaza findings article](https://www.brizenortonfiles.com/articles/gaza-genocide-findings-before-brize-norton). ## Questions and answers **Who is Richard Hermer?** Richard Hermer, Lord Hermer KC, is a human rights lawyer who became Attorney General on 5 July 2024. He has represented detainees at Guantanamo Bay, and he was previously a member of the Reform Jewish Zionist youth movement RSY-Netzer. **Did Richard Hermer personally consent to the Brize Norton charges?** Section 4 charges need personal consent from the Attorney General or the Solicitor General. The reporting used for this profile does not say which of them gave consent in the Brize Norton case. **What has Richard Hermer said about Israel?** At the Jewish Labour Movement's annual conference in 2025, he said that condemning Hamas while criticising the Israeli government does not suggest moral equivalence between the two, according to Jewish News. ## Sources 1. [Attorney General: Lord Hermer KC](https://www.gov.uk/government/people/richard-hermer) — GOV.UK 2. Novara Media report by Simon Childs on the arms export decision and the Attorney General's office — Novara Media 3. Jewish News report on Hermer's remarks at the Jewish Labour Movement conference — Jewish News 4. Jewish Voice for Liberation report on Hermer's impartiality — Jewish Voice for Liberation 5. Middle East Eye report on Hermer's public statements on Israel — Middle East Eye