'Ya'alon fears arrest if he goes to UK'

[azurnoir]

Vice Premier and former IDF Chief of Staff Moshe Ya'alon will not fly to London next month, for fear of being arrested on war crimes charges, Israel Radio reported Monday morning.

The report added that Ya'alon had been invited to a charity event, and had sought advice from the Foreign Ministry before accepting or declining the invitation. Legal sources in the ministry reportedly advised him not to travel to the UK.

The report comes less than a week after a British court rejected a petition urging an arrest warrant for Defense Minister Ehud Barak on the grounds that he committed "war crimes" during the IDF offensive in the Gaza Strip earlier this year.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1254673320941&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

[LeftishBrit]

1. Good as we don't need any more people like that in the UK.

That being said, the UK should first arrest Tony Blair for war crimes, and only then deal with members of other governments.

[dipsydoodle]

4. And Blair can't claim diplomatic immunity here.

:)

[Howardx]

2. newton covered this

"To every action there is always an equal and opposite reaction"

[dipsydoodle]

3. BBC link

Israel minister feared UK arrest :

Israeli minister and former military chief Moshe Yaalon cancelled a UK visit because of fears of arrest for alleged war crimes, his office says.

Pro-Palestinian groups in Britain want him to face trial over the 2002 killing of a Gaza militant, in which 14 others died, at least eight of them children.
>
Mr Yaalon, who is vice prime minister and strategic affairs minister, had been invited to attend a charity dinner held by the Jewish National Fund's UK branch.
>
Allegations against Mr Yaalon date back to July 2002, when an Israel Air force jet dropped a one-tonne bomb in a densely populated area of Gaza to assassinate senior Hamas figure Salah Shehada.

[oberliner]

5. Has Britain ever arrested anyone for war crimes?

They've had quite a few war criminals visit their country - and I would daresay they have more than a few who make their home there.

Haven't Bush and compant paid a visit or two to the UK?

[azurnoir]

6. Has Bush made a non-diplomatic visit to the UK?

that seems to be the difference here, Ehud Barak's visit was for diplomatic reasons hence diplomatic immunity, Ya'alon's would have been a "social call" of sorts no immunity for that

[oberliner]

7. Gotcha

I wonder what George's overseas vacation plans look like for the coming years!

[azurnoir]

10. Paraguay ? n/t

[shira]

13. no - ergo the hypocrisy - only Israel is held to a different standard, even higher than NATO

"Criticizing Israel is not anti-Semitic, and saying so is vile. But singling out Israel for opprobrium and international sanction out of all proportion to any other party in the Middle East is anti-Semitic, and not saying so is dishonest."

-Thomas Friedman

[Scurrilous]

8. Tiptoeing between lawsuits: Senior officials stay in Israel

After Ehud Barak nearly arrested in London, Minister Ya'alon cancels his trip to Britain 'in light of legal recommendation.' However, together with Mazuz, only two lawyers handling some 1,000 foreign lawsuits against politicians and military officers. 'Situation intolerable,' said a senior official in Jerusalem

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3785712,00.html

<snip>

"Will someone try to arrest them? Three Israeli lawyers against 1,000 lawsuits from around the world that put senior officials at legal risk for Israel's defense activities. Such is the situation facing senior Israeli officials traveling abroad recently, from government ministers all the way to IDF officers.

The most recent case involved Vice Prime Minister Moshe Ya'alon, who canceled a trip to London next month for a conference being held by England's Jewish National Fund to raise funds for a house intended for lone soldiers. Ya'alon's office reported Monday, "Minister Ya'alon has avoided visiting England in recent years in light of a legal recommendation so as not to play into the hands of propaganda against Israel, its leaders, and its officers."

<snip>

"This team of three is in charge of all the open cases in the world against senior Israeli officials, politicians, and defense establishment officials. The number of open cases could change at any given moment, especially following the publication of the Goldstone Report in the UN Human Rights Council that claimed that Israel committed war crimes during Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip."

<snip>

"A long list of current and former ministers and officers cannot travel to many destinations in the world without first conferring with a special team appointed for assessing threats to senior officials. Among those on this dubious list are former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, MK Shaul Mofaz, MK Avi Dichter, Defense Minister Ehud Barak, Minister Ben Eliezer, Ya'alon, and Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai.

The military officials who must take extra precautions include Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi and all the senior officers below him, including the military prosecution officers who accompanied Operation Cast Lead."

[IndianaGreen]

9. Just like Pinochet and Henry Kissinger

the war criminals fear deportation to The Hague.

[ProgressiveMuslim]

11. ... and the rightful international isolation begins. This marks a new chapter indeed. nt

[BunkerHill24]

12. Good on those who seek justice

It will serve as a warning to those who may in future contemplate the commission of such heinous act in Gaza, and beyond.