Close up:

Upholding justice

By Salama A Salama

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At a time when the Arab League and the Egyptian Foreign Ministry are documenting Israel's war crimes in the recent onslaught against Gaza, some European countries -- including Spain -- are thinking of changing their laws to ensure that Israeli war criminals are never brought to trial in their courts.

Fouad Abdel-Moneim Riyad, one of Egypt's top legal experts and a former judge at the International Criminal Court, says that available evidence indicates that Israel committed genocide in Gaza. His views are shared by fair-minded Israelis, including historian Ilan Pappe. Some of Israel's crimes are believed to have exceeded in cruelty the crimes committed in the last decade in Bosnia.

The problem, however, is that the procedures for trying war criminals in any particular country are subject to international calculations and political pressures, some of which are not necessarily in our favour as Arabs. It is therefore advisable for Arab countries to seek the help of civil institutions and appeal to conscientious individuals to assist in building the legal case and bringing Israeli criminals to justice.

The atrocities that have been committed need to become public knowledge, for they constitute crimes against humanity and an impediment to efforts aiming to promote human rights.

Persistent documentation of Israel's crimes is the first step towards building the case before international and national courts. It is unlikely for the Arabs to win a UN Security Council resolution calling for the crimes committed in Gaza and the West Bank to be prosecuted. But once the UN Security Council has failed to take action, the matter can be referred to the General Assembly by virtue of the Uniting for Peace resolution of 1950. Once the General Assembly takes over, Arab countries would have little trouble getting the support they need.

The whole thing may take time, however. And Israel's friends in the US and the EU are likely to use the time to hide the evidence. It is therefore preferable to file lawsuits with the national courts of countries frequented by Israeli leaders. Even though the atrocities may not have taken place in their territory, they would be required by their commitments under international law to take action.

Lawsuits should not be confined to the soldiers who committed the physical acts, for the liability extends to the commanders who ordered the atrocities and the political leaders who made the policies. The top people, whether military or political, are responsible for the crimes perpetrated by their subordinates.

Fearing legal action, Israel now withholds the names of the officers who took part in the crimes. But that doesn't absolve politicians and the top brass from criminal responsibility. And if indicted abroad, they may have to avoid travelling for fear of being arrested. We may actually reach the point where it would be the right, indeed duty, of every country in the world to arrest Israeli leaders and bring them to justice.

This is something that Arab governments dealing with Israel, including our own, should understand. It is always possible for Israeli leaders to visit these countries for any number of reasons. And we cannot ask others to engage in a legal process that we are unwilling to enforce at home.

I believe that we should pursue this course of action, regardless of any future political and diplomatic developments that may lead to talks or agreements involving Israel. It should be clear to all by now that Israel doesn't see the peace agreements it made with Arab countries as a reason for refraining from murder. Israel is a loose cannon, and we have the means that can put it in its place.