To come. Here in northern germany the German Armed Forces the bundeswehr this holding its open day. Fun and games for the entire family say the organizers and a chance for the arms industry to show off its whereas especially for munitions giant run metal there is hardly a german Weapons Project that does not involve brian matusz much thanks. The German Company goes back a long way and this says one of its main locations i cut. Five thousand kilometers away bombs are being dropped on civilians in a war that makes a mockery of International Law and despite apparently strict export rules ryan matal is making a killing out of it. This way rapidly that if cities are expanding. They all getting restless as well it will drop to the bottom this is an infamous game with dubious roles in terms of legality ethics and morality what would you call it out of the dutch attention or German Technology and expertise are being used to deal in death we have to do all we can to stop this. Every two years the british capital attracts military delegations from around the world they come to the london docklands to attend the d. S. Fact that countries may be at war with each other but here they can bury the hatchet while they buy new weapons. One of the biggest stands of the trade fam belongs to ron mittal germanys leading arms manufacturer the docile Dollface Company sells three billion euros worth of military equipment tanks cannons Simulation Systems guns and ammunition. Shall most for mortar launches artillery guns tanks and ordnance on display like precious museum exhibits looking so shiny and pretty that an observer could forget that these instruments of death. Many of those inside all familiar with this man on the outside Andrew FeinsteinInternational Arms trade expert and former South African parliamentarian hes not allowed in fortunately my name is well known to you organizes off the arms for him so ive never grown to try to take a shine to come inside the sphere since he uncovered a huge um scandal in his country has been operating from london for his own show. Safety is Research Also focuses on german arms exports germany plays a role through the export of weapons especially into regions that are unstable where there is conflict where there is repression. Most obviously today the middle east and plays a role in ensuring that those conflicts are remarkably bloody. Like the campaign in yemen it was originally touted as a short aerial intervention and led by saudi arabia to defeat the militias who were allegedly terrorizing the country. More than a thousand days later there has been no sign of a let up the who thinks of put up stiffer resistance than expected and the saudis and their allies have responded by raising much of yemen to the ground they bomb schools hospitals and residential areas they destroy infrastructure and apparently aim to starve the country into submission its a war thats claimed thousands of lives and led to a humanitarian catastrophe. Going by the book the german arms industry should have nothing to do with this war. For example it is forbidden by german law to export arms to countries where they can be used to disturb the peace is explored as the German Security and Defense Industry we completely accept that. But there are ways and means to turn a profit that all the same one of those ways is by an island in the mediterranean familiar to many germans as a holiday destination. Come out openly is one of sunday is best known politicians he was regional president before he was elected to the Italian Parliament and run a politician who conducts a lot of his research personally including research into ryan meant top. It all began just over two years ago when he got a tip off that something incredible was happening at kalyani apple had planes full of vacation to snap and take off. And that these days this area here was full of bombs it was quite a show of course the people who saw it got excited about the countless bombs being loaded onto a cargo plane they demanded a crisis for them the moment that he got they when they got a call. These are photos of the operation the weapons of war being loaded up next to the tourist carriers. U. S. General purpose bombs from the mock eighty series being loaded onto a plane belonging to silk way and azerbaijani an line that specializes in transporting weapons to crisis hit regions. What was going on. When he got his balls havent got the only answer i got this from the operators of the airport people you know who said that all the flights were authorized but chief no further details both liberal and i asked the same question in parliament and was told the same thing that is and that it that the flights were authorized. This was official confirmation of that bombs were being transported out of the dust bowl to the bomb but the bombs are assembled here in rural sod india about forty five kilometers west of. In a valley near the town of goma snow boss is an unassuming looking factory that makes bombs by the thousands. It belongs to a Company Called w. M. Italia the abbreviation stands for ryan mittal weapon and munition and it is a one hundred percent subsidiary of german manufacturer run mittal. But it got the days this is a german factory on italian territory that makes a deadly product. Bombs that are sold all over the world by measurement here germany is exploiting it disadvantaged area. With its high unemployment. Arms are being manufactured for huge profits but a brute i did not is what is happening in this area. Because for the course of the. Book where of the bombs made by ryan mittal inside dinny and deployed in twenty fifteen an employee of the ngo Human Rights Watch snapped these photographs of bomb components. They were found in sabah in northern yemen a city with a population of fifty thousand shortly after a saudi bombing raid. The bomb but as a code number that indicates the type of bomb a month and its origin. The italian island of sardinia. When queried ryan mittal in total golf admitted that the n. S. A. Encode thirteen twenty five fifteen one five fifty eight twenty four indicates that it was made by wm italia gradually a coherent picture is emerging he seems just request of ha obviously lots of people said nothing yeah doe first the government in rome. In the Regional Government and anyone else who knew what was going on. Because factory was always used to make explosives but they were used for civilian purposes ok the plant used to supply the local mines that once existed here in sardinia. But at some stage the factory was repurposed more or less secretly on a. Quest screwed out that. Central bubblin in may twenty seventeen protest does take to the streets to do. Demonstrate against ryan metal as it holds its annual Shareholders Meeting. But despite not lets be clear i never buy shares in ryan mattel to make a profit is guilty of complicity with arms exports and with murder throughout the world. Works for an Italian Foundation he is part of a network that buys ryan mittal shanas not for the dividend but to ask difficult questions at shareholder meetings he has heard that ryan mittal plans to invest heavily in its factory in sardinia. To me to get a frog these and i would like to ask why these facilities are being expended in dont most know of us as we read that there is going to be a new testing range we dont understand exactly what is going on what is being tested and what for which weapons. And where are these weapons being exported to. These have often exposed to it. At previous annual meetings of ramen town photographs were allowed these are from twenty fifteen. This show rahmatullah chairman baca and behind him the other directors and Supervisory Board members now photos are prohibited when the chairman gets up to talk business his message to this meeting all the trends point to growth especially for rye matal defense the weapons to push. Sales of almost three billion euros in twenty sixteen fourteen percent year on year growth and the new order for munitions to the tune of four hundred nine eleven Million Euros. The destination is in one of the most conflict torn regions in the world the middle east and north africa rime mittal wont say exactly which country has played. The oughta. Be fun what did you make of the numbers. At the moment the company is in good shape and it was all very correct and democratic perfect but would you do well the dividend is not bad at all its certainly better than the interest the local bank pays it doesnt get all the you that balms may buy rahmatullah being used in yemen at least a dozen other maybe. Thats the wrong question have bombs are being dropped there its not right mattel dropping them. If i was the Shareholders Meeting it was good good but what did you like in particular because the whole atmosphere the whole package is im tight we thought what did you make of the numbers they presented. Yes promising sorry i have to catch my bus to tim was does it bother you that bombs may buy rahmatullah being dropped in yemen. To rio it does not everything is put to the right use but there are positives to buy for now qantas. Moto major lotto now has confirmation that the plantain saab genius is growing in importance for run mittal. You flog a new but you know they answered some of our questions about plans to expand the plant and dont most know of us so im just up this they said they would invest seventeen to twenty Million Euros in two thousand and seventeen and the same again in two thousand and eighteen. Thousand oxen also we dont we. Know of us is a small town with high unemployment and the dwindling population business is booming for one fun run meant tals bomb factory. It is dramatic this is a business based on death. The more people are killed the more weapons are bought the more you kill the more weapons he needs its. Perverse mechanism that a Democratic State should not tolerate neither for moral nor economic reasons. But how come this small town in southern sardinia play such a big role in the International Arms trade lets take a look at a complicated contract from twenty twelve that formed the basis for a major export deal. The Saudi ArabianDefense Ministry orders bombs from us from raytheon its british subsidiary subcontracts the rime a town subsidiary of w. M. Italia to produce them contract is worth more than sixty three Million Euros. The order was delivered from dormice nov us to jeddah islamic seaport from where it was taken to the end customer the Royal Saudi Air force this contract ran until mid twenty seventeen and covered thousands of m. K. Eighty three bombs. Since the start of the saudi economic and in yemen in twenty fifteen at the very latest it has been doubtful whether the arms exports are in line with italian law. Is that the deep vein these are sales to a country at war to a conflict that has been condemned by the United Nations a numerous occasions the italian constitution which condemns war and a law on arms exports totally prohibit this kind of export. How is it possible for ryan mittal to export bombs from sandton into saudi arabia nonetheless when asked the italian defense minister said it had nothing to do with. What these are not italian bonds they are covered by a contract signed by a us firm that subcontracted to. That company has factories in italy. Numerous written queries to the Italian Government went. Who then is responsible for the bombs exported by germanys biggest manufacturer. In berlin the federal Security Council meets in secret to decide what. Can go ahead. Of the chancellor and important. Decisions on the governments political principles which say supplying weapons of war shall not be approved to countries involved in. That is a danger of such a conflict breaking out. A flexible principle as the latest figures show twenty seventeen the German Government did indeed approve exports to some countries that dont meet the requirements German Companies exporting nations worth four hundred twenty eight Million Euros to egypt two hundred forty nine Million Euros worth to saudi arabia two hundred fourteen million to the United Arab Emirates in the late one nine hundred eighty s. When he was chancellor his defense minister of the Christian Democratic Union was a member of the federal Security Council professor knows the legal and political ramifications of exports. Its a grey area heres one example. To saudi arabia intended for Police Border controls that has nothing to do with the military or military purposes however if the intention is to deploy them for military purposes they do need approval according to legislation governing the weapons of war in other words its a grey area. Grey area there should be no question about expo. To saudi arabia for the war in yemen. Arms can be used or intended for use in wars of aggression or for measures that would disturb the peace as the law stipulates then the federal government is duty bound to refuse to approve their export time the German Economic Ministry has to say about the bomb sold by iran mittal the matter you describe the assumption that the export of bombs took place from italy in this regard german law pertains to exports from germany its very easy for the German Authorities to say these particular munitions and equipment are being produced in italy their responsibility of the to regulate the italians. And therefore. Them and it is in this way that the global trade in weapons remains less regulated than the global trade. Some deals were approved by neither the italian nor the German Government run the town has found another way around the regulations this time by south africa. Since the days of apartheid the country has had a powerful arms industry with close ties to politicians. One of the few politicians who lost critical questions about this is copus marais of the Opposition PartyDemocratic Alliance in twenty sixteen he learned that an entire time p. Arms factory had been exported to saudi arabia. We were concerned that you know said saudi arabia has got a good record in terms of human rights and suppression of human rights especially women and then the you know the perception that they are supporting isis and even some rebel forces in yemen and other countries it is in conflict zones and we were concerned that whatever gets manufactured the we you know can be used directly or in directly in those in those areas the government did not respond to questions about reportedly unchecked use of the arms factory which added to my raise concern. That were not convinced at all i think its as stated in the in a previous in earlier that bin anything can be used and sometimes in the future so its a Saudi Company now so it makes it even more difficult to monitor and control because they would tell us probably i suspect it would be doing is not good nothing to do with you we dont use your products to manufacture anything. Despite the fact that the original plan. Was manufactured and installed. Fifty kilometers east of cape town on the way to the Somerset West township is the headquarters of the company that built the factory its a huge complex with tight security a site of National Strategic importance which is why filming is actually prohibited to watch transparent a familiar blue logo of rime atop this branch is called the now munition audi m m presents itself as a premium manufacturing. Precision. Battle tested you see where every detail to see. When its Mission Critical there is no. Compromise. This is where the ships crew stay in. Their ultimate. Sun transmissions for when you shoot this line little to no ministry. Export company and one of the most Successful Companies into africa they have got a tenth of. Every year. Two thousand people and they all crying at. The factories all even running double shifts because theyre also busy if anyone of staff because Success Stories on the Defense Industry side of. The story began a decade ago when run motown started a joint venture with the state run South African Company then now. In two thousand and eight two for. Joint South African and the now and germanys run matal defense efficiency and quality. Right now minissha will there have been constant scandals around. The whole. Africas military infrastructure is constantly embroiled in scandal so its origins. And its practices since then have remained criminal to be in partnership with a company that is a state owned enterprise in south africa means that you are effectively engaging in the corruption that is taking place in the South African state today. We are back in northern germany in a villa