Under Israeli pressure, Britain will change law allowing prosecution of foreigners for crimes against humanity

IMEMC - In his visit to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories this week, British Foreign Secretary William Hague reported being 'ambushed' by Israeli officials who canceled a high-level security briefing with Hague in response to a British threat to arrest an Israeli official for war crimes.

Hague said he resented this move by Israel, since the British coalition government had already agreed to change the 'universal jurisdiction law' which allows for the prosecution of foreign citizens who have engaged in crimes against humanity.

Israeli officials have faced increasing threats of arrest by a variety of countries which use the universal jurisdiction law. According to Amnesty International, the law of universal jurisdiction is a requirement for all states who are signatories to the Convention against Torture and the Inter-American Convention, which states that whenever a person suspected of torture is found in their territory, they must submit the case to their prosecuting authorities for the purposes of prosecution, or to extradite that person. Read more