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The war in Yemen has left at least 10,000 dead and more than 3 million displaced. Yemen is the Arab world's poorest country and is home to 22 million.

“I am submitting a request for a commission of inquiry knowing that France ratified the 2014 Arms Trade Treaty,” said Sebastien Nadot, a lawmaker elected last year. 

“On the question of French weapons being used against civilian populations in Yemen, I want to know if France is respecting its international commitments,” he added.

It is unclear if other lawmakers will back Nadot's efforts to establish an inquiry into the weapons sales. 

Unlike in many other Western countries, no parliamentary approval is required for arms sales in France. Only a committee headed by the prime minister and a handful of other cabinet officials must agree to any sales. 

Once approved, the details are rarely reviewed or made public. 

“Parliament must be able to control whether these weapons are sold in respect of international law,” said Nadot, who questioned the French proces of arms exports.

“If we are just a transmission belt, and not (a) body of control and evaluation, then abstention (in elections) has a bright future ahead of it,” he added.

According to a YouGov poll on Monday, 75 per cent of French people want Macron to suspend arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Amnesty International and other human rights groups have warned there is a high risk of legal action against the sales.

Legal risk

Amnesty International and other human rights groups have warned there is a high risk of legal action against France over the arms sales to Saudi Arabia. 

Among the French hardware reportedly used in Yemen are Leclerc tanks, as well as Mirage 2000s, along with various other naval, ground and infantry assets.

France is the third-largest arms exporter in the world. Saudi Arabia and the UAE are major purchasers of French arms.

Other European countries -- such as Germany and Norway -- have banned weapons sales to Gulf countries involved in the Yemen war.

The US and UK have not followed suit, despite mounting criticism of sales in both countries.