Israel takes UK to task for Livni ‘war crimes’ interrogation bid
After ex-foreign minister dodges British police inquiry, Jerusalem says it ‘expected different behavior from a close ally’
Tamar Pileggi is a breaking news editor at The Times of Israel.
Israel on Sunday panned the United Kingdom for summoning Zionist Union MK Tzipi Livni, a former foreign minister, for questioning over alleged war crimes, claiming it fueled a “moral equivalence” between terrorists and those fighting against them.
A statement issued by the Foreign Ministry said Jerusalem viewed the request by the British Metropolitan Police to question Livni during her visit to the UK “with great concern.
“We would have expected different behavior from a close ally such as the UK,” the ministry said.
“Israel stands shoulder to shoulder with its global partners — including the UK — in both its commitment to the rule of law and its ongoing fight against the threat of terrorism and extremism,” the statement said. “It would expect that those sharing this commitment act to prevent the abuse of their legal system for political ends and to confront attempts to draw a moral equivalence between those perpetrating terror and those fighting against it.”
The communique added that Israel would “do all in its power to ensure that all of its citizens are not the subject of the cynical, political abuse of otherwise legitimate legal tools, including in the UK.”
Livni, who arrived in London last week to attend a Haaretz conference, was summoned on Thursday for a “voluntary interview” by police over her involvement in Israel’s 2008 war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip — known as Operation Cast Lead — when she was foreign minister.
According to Haaretz, the request was dropped after an exchange between Israeli and British diplomats that granted Livni diplomatic immunity.
Livni served as a member of prime minister Ehud Olmert’s security cabinet during the three-week conflict between Hamas and Israel in 2008-2009. Pro-Palestinian groups have repeatedly attempted — during her visits to the UK — to have her charged with war crimes, but the summons by Scotland Yard was unprecedented.
Speaking Sunday at the conference in London, Livni, who also served as justice minister and headed up peace talks with the Palestinians, said the situation could not continue.
“The fact that Israeli decision makers and army commanders are forced to participate in a ‘theater of the absurd’ when we come to London is something that is not acceptable,” she said. “It’s not a personal issue. It’s a moral issue, and this is something that needs to be changed.”
She added that she was “proud of the decisions [she] made as a cabinet minister in the Israeli government.”
Zionist Union leader Isaac Herzog sent a letter to British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, saying the summons “makes a mockery of the British government’s calls for unity in fighting radical Islamist terror, and legitimizes those that seek to murder children and terrorize society.”
A year ago, Livni avoided possible arrest when she attended the Fortune Most Powerful Women International Summit in London, which could have been considered a personal visit, leaving her unprotected. To preempt the problem, Livni arranged to meet with senior UK government officials, enabling the Knesset speaker to approve her travel as an official visit.
In 2009, ahead of a planned trip, a British court issued a warrant for Livni over alleged war crimes committed by the Israel Defense Forces during the three-week conflict. She did not go through with that trip.
UK lawyers representing pro-Palestinian groups have repeatedly taken advantage of legal loopholes and sought to have Israeli officials visiting the country arrested for alleged breaches of international law under the terms of universal jurisdiction.
But in 2011, Britain changed the law to make it more difficult to obtain arrest warrants against Israeli figures by requiring the consent of the director of public prosecutions. The amended law helps those visiting Britain in an official capacity. Those making trips of a personal nature are left vulnerable.
Last year, former defense minister and chief of staff Shaul Mofaz was nearly arrested when he visited London. At the time, Mofaz was greeted at the airport by two Israeli diplomats. His arrest was avoided after swift action by the Israeli Embassy in London and the British Embassy in Israel.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
