Universal jurisdiction alive and well in Belgium
A Belgian court has been asked to charge Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak and former Israeli Foreign Minister and current opposition leader Tzipi Livni with war crimes arising out of Operation Cast Lead. Former Prime Minister Ehud K. Olmert is also to be charged. The seventy page indictment was submitted by a group of 14 people, mostly Gazan Palestinians, and relates to events that took place during Operation Cast Lead in January 2009.Deja vu all over again.
Belgium's "Universal Jurisdiction" law makes it possible for the case to be tried in Belgium despite the fact that the events in question took place elsewhere.
The indictment defines several Israeli actions as war crimes, including an attack on a mosque in which civilians were killed, as well as attacks on plantations and water systems.
Livni had refrained from traveling to Belgium in 2009 during her stint as foreign minister for fear of facing legal action in the country.
A Brussels court granted a war crimes suit against former prime minister Ariel Sharon in 2001.
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 2:55 PM
1 Comments:
Israel's Stupid Jews do nothing to press Belgium to change its law - and last I heard, the UK's "universal jurisdiction" law also remains on the books.
What could go wrong indeed
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