Tzipi LivniMa'an
A British court has issued an arrest warrant for former Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni over her involvement in Israel's assault on Gaza last winter...
There were conflicting reports over her whereabouts...
The London-based newspaper The Jewish Chronicle first reported that Livni, fearing arrest, cancelled a visit to the UK over the weekend. She was scheduled to speak at the Jewish National Fund's 2010 conference in London and meet British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, the report said.
Approached by Ma'an, JNF chairman Samuel Hayek said in a statement Livni was "unable to attend" the conference, and that she sent a pre-recorded message in her stead. "I am not at liberty to confirm her precise reasons for not attending...
Human rights attorney Shawqi Issa, a specialist in international law, said the type of order supposedly issued in London would only apply if Livni were inside the UK. "Legally, the British court couldn't have issued an arrest warrant except in the event that it confirmed her presence on British soil," he said in an interview.
Meanwhile, Ma'an was told that police visited a residence in which the Israeli opposition leader was thought to be staying. According to this report, Livni was in the UK rather than Israel on Monday afternoon.
A spokesman for the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs refused to speculate. Calls to the British Consulate in Jerusalem went unanswered, and the country's embassy in Tel Aviv did not return calls seeking comment.
Livni's office denied the arrest reports, but affirmed that she cancelled the UK visit. "We declined the invitation to the annual JNF conference two weeks ago. Livni is proud of all the decisions she made regarding Operation Cast Lead," her office said in a statement, according to the Hebrew-language daily Yedioth Ahronoth. Full story
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