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Officials Said Fearing Wave Of War Crimes Suits Over Lebanon
Last update - 18:41 04/09/2006
By Haaretz Service
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The Foreign Ministry fears a wave of lawsuits accusing Israeli military and governmental officials of war crimes, Army
Radio said Monday, adding that a report prepared by the ministry's chief legal advisor warns officials against
inflammatory statements in connection with the recent war, saying that their words could later be used against them in
foreign lawsuits or indictments for alleging them to be war criminals.
In the past, a number of IDF generals have deferred visits to Europe, for fear of arrest over allegations of war crimes
in connection with the Intifada.
Cabinet Minister Yitzhak Herzog, currently traveling in Finland, said Monday that international conventions granted
government officials immunity from prosecution, but that the problem was "much more complicated" with respect to IDF
officers, especially retired officers.
"There is no question that there is an effort by organizations of various kinds to harm, in particular, [IDF] officers
and commanders. This certainly doesn't touch the governmental echelon, but this takes nothing away from the seriousness
of the problem."
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