UK advocacy group files war crimes complaint against senior British politicians over Gaza

By Aysu Bicer

LONDON (AA) – The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) has lodged a criminal complaint against senior UK politicians, including ministers, accusing them of complicity in war crimes committed in the Gaza Strip.

The ICJP announced on Tuesday that it had submitted hard drives and evidence dossiers to the Metropolitan Police's War Crimes Unit last week.

"On the 12th of January, the particular 78-page dossier replete with eyewitness accounts, and video and photographic evidence was presented to the unit, detailing purported crimes within the UK jurisdiction under universal jurisdiction principles, as well as directly under UK law," Tayab Ali, the director of the ICJP, told a press conference.

"We remind those in power that any attempt to obstruct justice will be met with the full recourse of law. The suspects in this complaint include high-ranking Israeli officials and military personnel and nine British citizens serving in the IDF, alongside four British government ministers and officials alleged to have committed these crimes."

"This is just the first tranche of our evidence and the first list of suspects... we will add further offenses and further categories of suspects, including commentators who continue to support war crimes," he said.

He also said the ICJP will continue to actively investigate the crime of genocide and the British government's "potential complicity in it and will provide police with further evidence as it becomes available."

The complaint, shared following a public request from the police for evidence of war crimes in Israel and Gaza, also implicates Israeli politicians and private British citizens, including some who allegedly fought for the Israeli army abroad.

- 'Political interference' in police work

Previously, the Metropolitan Police has faced criticism, with former Prime Minister Boris Johnson among those suggesting that the call for evidence is a politicization of the force.

Ali responded to a question on Johnson's comments, stating that they amounted to unwelcome "political interference" in the police's work.

The police defended their efforts, asserting that their war crimes team is obligated, under the Rome Statute, to support any investigations opened by the International Criminal Court that involve British subjects.

The 78-page ICJP complaint includes photographic evidence and harrowing eyewitness accounts, urging a thorough investigation into the actions of the named British ministers who are accused of aiding and abetting war crimes through continued military support for Israel.

The complaint alleges that UK weapons and intelligence are used in operations that fail to respect the principles of distinction and proportionality, targeting civilians.

While most of the individuals named in the complaint reside in Israel, the ICJP has requested the police to monitor their entry into the UK, as many are officials who travel frequently.

- 'Unlawful to grant licenses to export weapons to Israel'

CJP Senior External Counsel Haydee Dijkstal also provided a detailed outline of the 70+ pages of evidence provided to Scotland Yard in support of ICJP’s war crimes complaint.

"And there's two sources of law in the UK that provide universal jurisdiction on which this complaint has been fixed. The first being the Geneva Conventions Act of 1957, which allows jurisdiction in the UK for crimes committed by any individual, whatever nationality, for crimes that are committed either inside or outside the UK. This also includes aiding and abetting," she explained.

"The second source that we've used to base this complaint is the International Criminal Court Act of 2001. This applies specifically to UK nationals and residents who are subject to punishment in the UK for international crimes committed outside the UK," she added.

Dijkstal noted that while a ruling from the International Court of Justice wouldn't impact the complaint, the ICJP would continue conversations with the police to provide more information and address any questions as the investigation progresses.

Alice Hardy, a public law expert and partner at Bindmans LLP, also talked about UK arms exports and the response by the Department for Business and Trade. She has been working on a case by the Palestinian human rights organization Al-Haq and the UK-based Global Legal Action Network (Glan), which is being supported by ICJP.

She said it is "unlawful to grant licenses to export weapons to Israel because it's a breach of the export licensing criteria, which require that licenses won't be granted if there is a clear risk that the weapons will be used to commit or facilitate serious breaches of international humanitarian law, or if it's inconsistent with the Arms Trade Treaty."

"The Arms Trade Treaty requires that states can't authorize transformative weapons if it would violate international obligations, or if the state knows that the weapons will be used to commit genocide crimes against humanity," she added.