Now that Britain has finally amended its noxious universal jurisdiction law, Israeli opposition leader Tzipi Livni has announced that she will visit London.
Opposition Chairwoman Tzipi Livni announced that she will travel to London next week, her first trip to the United Kingdom since it issued a warrant for her arrest in the aftermath of Operation Cast Lead.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague called Livni last week, on the eve of Rosh Hashanah, and invited her to visit the UK. On Sunday, she said that she has accepted the invitation.
Someone please tell me that it's a one-way ticket.
Britain has finally amended that obnoxious universal jurisdiction law, which had left high-ranking Israeli government and IDF officials unable to visit the UK.
“The Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act, which has now received Royal Assent, includes an important amendment to ensure that the UK’s justice system can no longer be abused for political reasons," [British Ambassador to Israel Matthew] Gould said, adding that "the change will ensure that people cannot be detained when there is no realistic chance of prosecution, while ensuring that we continue to honour our international obligations.
The British ambassador emphasized that “the UK remains committed to ensuring that those guilty of war crimes are brought to justice. This amendment requires the Director of Public Prosecutions to consent to the issuing of an arrest warrant for crimes of universal jurisdiction and will put an end to requests for warrants where there is no realistic chance of prosecution.”
And guess who Gould invited to London....
Gould called Opposition Chairwoman Tzipi Livni, who had an arrest warrant issued against her on December 2009, and announced the news. "Mrs. Livni, London is waiting," he reportedly told her.
I'm happy to have her go... so long as it's a one-way ticket.
Former Defense Minister AmirComrade Peretz escaped from London on Saturday night just ahead of a warrant for his arrest for committing 'war crimes' during the 2006 Second Lebanon War. The arrest would have been carried out under Britain's still-unchanged universal jurisdiction law.
The former defense minister refused to cancel his visit, claiming that by doing so he would be admitting defeat, sources said. The Justice Ministry accepted his stance, but was prepared to stand by with a legal team.
Peretz was scheduled to give a speech at a London university, and elements estimated that the anti-Israel activists would ambush him there before police would arrive to arrest him.
Following the defense elements' advice, Peretz decided to trick the activists; he e-mailed the university administration to inform it that he had to cancel the trip for personal reasons. The plot worked, causing the activists to call off the arrest warrant.
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Peretz then traveled to the UK and fulfilled his other engagements, keeping a low profile. He spoke before an Israeli business club, and met with representatives of London's Jewish community.
But word of Peretz's trip eventually reached the activists, who renewed the efforts to issue a warrant against him. The defense establishment then advised the MK to push his return up from Sunday to Saturday evening – a move that evidently saved Peretz embarrassment, as the arrest warrant was eventually issued right after his departure.
I would have thought that these 'activists' would want Peretz to be defense minister rather than arresting him. After all, he was so successful the last time he held the job....
Normally, military attache Yochanan Locker goes anywhere his boss, Prime Minister Netanyahu, goes. But on Wednesday, Netanyahu went to London and Locker stayed home. Locker was Deputy Commander of the Air Force during Operation Cast Lead, and despite all the promises, England still has not changed its universal jurisdiction law. So Locker stayed home.
UK officials said the government of Prime Minister David Cameron was moving on the issue, whereas the previous Labor government provided empty rhetoric.
The British government said the planned change to the law was designed to stop “possible abuse by people trying to obtain arrest warrants for grave crimes, on the basis of flimsy evidence to make a political statement, or to cause embarrassment.”
As of Wednesday – a full 10 months after the Conservatives’ proclamations – Locker, an integral member in Netanyahu’s circle of advisers, still preferred to remain in Israel rather than risk arrest in London.
I wonder if the shmucks plan to change the law before or after they vote to recognize 'Palestine' at the UN in September.
The British government hasn't changed much since the 1940's, has it? u
Gadhafi son and three grandsons killed - will those responsible be prosecuted for 'war crimes'?
During the night, Muammar Gadhafi's youngest son, Seif al-Arab Gadhafi (who was not his more famous brother Seif al-Islam Gadhafi) was killed along with three of his children who were under the age of 12. Muammar Gadhafi and one of his wives were in the son's house when the NATO planes attacked.
Let's go to the videotape.
The house in Tripoli was destroyed by the strike, with a massive crater where the house used to be. At least one unexploded bomb could be seen.
The building was in a residential area of Tripoli, according to Ibrahim, who insisted that Saif al-Arab Gadhafi was a student in Germany who was not deeply involved in Libya's military and government. The 29-year-old was the sixth of Gadhafi's eight biological children.
Ibrahim railed against NATO after the fatal strike, calling it an illegal act and a "war crime." He vowed revenge.
Speaking at a rally, Ibrahim told fellow Libyans, "Every one of you are Saif al-Arab."
Lt. Gen. Charles Bouchard, commander of NATO's military operations, said in a statement he was "aware of unconfirmed media reports that some of Gadhafi's family members may have been killed.
"We regret all loss of life, especially the innocent civilians being harmed as a result of this ongoing conflict," Bouchard said. "NATO is fulfilling its U.N. mandate to stop and prevent attacks against civilians with precision and care -- unlike Gadhafi's forces, which are causing so much suffering."
The NATO commander stated that all targets "are military in nature and have been clearly linked to the Gadhafi regime's systemic attacks on the Libyan population ... We do not target individuals."
A senior official in President Barack Obama's administration said the U.S. government is "very aware" of the reports, but cannot confirm who, if anyone, died in a strike until they see the evidence.
Might I remind you that several European countries, many of whom are NATO members who are involved in the fighting in Libya (e.g. Britain), have attempted to prosecute Israeli officials for 'war crimes' in connection with the killing of Hamas terror chieftain Salah Shehadeh in 2002. In that case, Shehadeh had gathered family members around him as human shielfs, and many of those family members were killed along with him.. Unlike Seif al-Arab Gadhafi, Salah Shehadeh was very much involved in planning terror attacks.
So does this mean that those NATO countries will attempt to prosecute those responsible for the deaths of Seif al-Arab Gadhafi's children? Don't hold your breaths. No one cares when Arabs are killed unless they are killed by Jews.
A South African group is seeking to have opposition leader Tzipi Livni arrested when she visits that country later this month.
The Media Review Network, a South African media group, was attempting to secure an arrest warrant against Opposition leader Tzipi Livni (Kadima) for her role in Operation Cast Lead, local news website News24 reported.
News24 quoted MRN chairperson Iqbal Jassat as saying that Livni, who served as foreign minister during the operation in Gaza, is due in South Africa this month on the invitation of the Jewish Board of Deputies.
"We have now been informed that she has been invited to this country and have therefore instructed our legal team to take all necessary measures to secure an arrest warrant and to pave the way for her prosecution," Jassat said.
"Our decision is based on the fact that SA is a signatory to the Rome statutes which obligates all member states to honor their responsibility in the prosecution of war criminals."
"We believe that her visit to this country would be an act of provocation and are therefore deeply disappointed that her hosts - the Jewish Board of Deputies - displayed such intolerance and callousness by having a known murderer who is a wanted criminal in many parts of the world, visit SA," Jassat said.
In response the attempt o secure an arrest warrant, the Jewish Board of Deputies accused the MRN of playing "petty politics," according to the report.
You may recall that a year ago, there was talk of Livni allowing herself to be arrested in England to challenge their universal jurisdiction law. But England is civilized compared to South Africa - I'd bet on Livni canceling this trip.
British government proposes amendment to universal jurisdiction law
The British government has proposed to amend its universal jurisdiction law to require the approval of a top prosecutor in order to arrest a foreign official.
Visiting foreign officials suspected of war crimes can only be arrested [in the UK] with the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions, under proposed new laws in the Police Reform and Social Responsibility bill.
The aim is to stop politically motivated campaign groups from successfully applying to the UK courts for war crimes arrest warrants in private prosecutions.
The move follows the outcry over attempts to detain high-profile figures intending to travel to London, including Tzipi Livni, the former Israeli foreign minister.
But Amnesty International warned the move would give suspect war criminals a "free ticket to escape the law".
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A Ministry of Justice spokesman said the measure was designed to ensure the so-called universal jurisdiction cases were proceeded with only where there was a prospect of a successful prosecution.
In an interview with Israel's Channel 10 (cable), British Foreign Secretary William Hague promised that Britain would amend its universal jurisdiction law within a year to allow members of the Israeli government and high-ranking members of the IDF to enter and leave Britain without fearing arrest.
He promised the law would be changed within the next year, but asked Israel not to pressure his government to move faster than the parliamentary process would allow.
“This is a parliamentary system, and the government does not control all that,” Hague said.
“I would expect it to be in place next year, but we will continue to do it to our own timetable. We do not need any intervention by other foreign ministers in that process, including the Israeli one,” he said.
Where have we heard that before? Answer: From the governments of both Gordon Brown and Tony Blair. Maybe the Brits are hoping that within a year, Israel will go away (God forbid) and then no one will ask them to amend the law.
Tensions were heightened further when Mr Hague met senior Palestinian activists spearheading the struggle against Israeli settlements and the West Bank security fence, and apparently expressed his support for their ‘non-violent struggle’.
Somehow that story didn't get into the Channel 10 interview either (although the interview may have taken place before that meeting).
The Brits are nothing if not consistent. They were hostile to Jews and Israel during the Mandate (including World War II when millions of Jews perished because the Brits would not open the gates of 'Mandatory Palestine' - an act for which they have never even apologized) and they remain hostile to this day. Conservatives, Labor - they're all the same.
Israel halts strategic dialogue with Britain over 'universal jurisdiction'
On Tuesday, I reported that Minister Dan Meridor had canceled a trip to London out of fear of arrest under Britain's 'universal jurisdiction' law. The law remains unchanged despite promises from Prime Minister David Cameron's government that it would be changed immediately upon their taking office. Finally, the Israeli government has decided to fight back: It has halted its 'strategic dialogue' with Britain until the law is changed.
Israel has canceled its special strategic dialogue with London to protest a law that enables Britain to arrest visiting Israeli officials for alleged war crimes, officials in Jerusalem said Wednesday.
The move was announced during British Foreign Secretary William Hague's two-day visit to the region.
"The strategic dialogue has indeed been postponed," Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor told AFP. "The visit by Foreign Minister Hague is an important phase in the ongoing exchange between the countries and the question of Israeli officials being unable to travel to Britain will be on the top of the agenda as far as we are concerned."
Britain is one of the European pioneers of universal jurisdiction, a broad legal concept that empowers judges to issue arrest warrants for nearly any visitor accused of committing war crimes anywhere in the world.
Pro-Palestinian activists have sought to use this concept to press charges against Israelis involved in military operations in Palestinian territories, particularly since last year's Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip. British officials have vowed to change the law.
The British embassy in Tel Aviv says that Foreign Secretary William Hague wants the law changed. But guess how Hague spent his day in Israel on Wednesday. I think it's pretty clear whose side he's on, and it's not ours.
I am an Orthodox Jew - some would even call me 'ultra-Orthodox.' Born in Boston, I was a corporate and securities attorney in New York City for seven years before making aliya to Israel in 1991 (I don't look it but I really am that old :-). I have been happily married to the same woman for thirty-five years, and we have eight children (bli ayin hara) ranging in age from 13 to 33 years and nine grandchildren. Four of our children are married! Before I started blogging I was a heavy contributor on a number of email lists and ran an email list called the Matzav from 2000-2004. You can contact me at: IsraelMatzav at gmail dot com
Now that Britain has finally amended its noxious universal jurisdiction law, Israeli opposition leader Tzipi Livni has announced that she will visit London. 
