Home > Fear of arrest still prevents Israeli officials from visiting Britain
Fear of arrest still prevents Israeli officials from visiting Britain
by Anshel Pfeffer - Open-Publishing - Tuesday 5 June 2012Despite changes to ’war crimes’ law in Britain, Maj. Gen. Doron Almog cancels trip on Jerusalem’s advice.
"The Israeli government fears senior state officials and military officers are still at risk of being arrested in Britain for alleged war crimes, despite a legal amendment aimed at precluding such arrests. Maj. Gen. (res.) Doron Almog had recently canceled an appearance at a fundraising dinner in London scheduled for next month at the advice of Jerusalem.
Almog, who was GOC Southern Command in 2000-2003, was almost arrested seven years ago at Heathrow Airport, after a local court issued a warrant for his arrest based on claims made by pro-Palestinian activists.
Almog is a patron of Aleh, a charity NGO that supports severely disabled young Israelis. In September 2005, as he was landing in Britain for fundraising purposes, the Israeli ambassador in London informed him about the arrest warrant for alleged war crimes committed under his command in the Gaza Strip. Almog remained on the plane and flew back to Israel.
After this incident, Jerusalem began pressuring London to amend its universal jurisdiction law, which allows private citizens to obtain arrest warrants for war crimes against foreigners visiting Britain.
Former Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and the Prime Minister’s Military Secretary, Maj. Gen. Yohanan Locker, are among the senior Israeli officials who have refrained from visiting Britain because of this law."