>Date: Tue, 22 Jan 2002 20:11:45 -0600
>From: "Laurie King-Irani" <coordinator@indictsharon.net>
>To: coordinator@indictsharon.net
>Reply-To: coordinator@indictsharon.net
>Organization: Justice for the Victims of Sabra & Shatila
>X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.77C-CCK-MCD {C-UDP; EBM-APPLE} (Macintosh; U; PPC)
>X-Accept-Language: en
>Subject: Website launched for Ariel Sharon Case in Belgium
>
>INTERNATIONAL CAMPAIGN FOR JUSTICE
>FOR THE VICTIMS OF SABRA AND SHATILA
>
>PRESS RELEASE
>
>DATE: 22 January 2002
>
>FOR: Immediate Release
>
>RE: New website offers in-depth legal analyses about landmark case
>lodged in Belgium charging Ariel Sharon, other Israelis and Lebanese,
>with war crimes and crimes against humanity; Belgium court prepares
>to convene for last in a series of pre-trial hearings.
>
>CONTACT: Laurie King-Irani, North American Coordinator, International
>Campaign for Justice for the Victims of Sabra and Shatila, 250-213-6872,
>
>coordinator@indictsharon.net
>
>
>On 18 June 2001, 23 survivors of the 1982 Sabra and Shatila massacres
>lodged a case in Belgium accusing Ariel Sharon, former Israeli
>defense minister and Israel's current prime minister, Commandant
>Brigadier General Amos Yaron, Commandant Major General Drori, Elias
>Hobeika and other Lebanese Phalangist militia leaders with war
>crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide related to the
>massacres committed between 16-18 September 1982 in two refugee camps
>in Beirut.
>
>This Wednesday, 23 January 2002, a court in Belgium will convene for
>the last in a series of pre-trial hearings before rendering a final
>decision about the admissibility of this case. The Sabra and Shatila
>survivors lodged the charges under 1993 and 1999 Belgian legislation
>that incorporates the principle of Universal Jurisdiction for war
>crimes and crimes against humanity into Belgian criminal law.
>
>Today, the International Committee for Justice for the Victims of
>Sabra and Shatila announced the launch of a comprehensive website
>providing accurate, up-to-date background information on the case as
>well as a wide selection of legal analyses:
>http://www.indictsharon.net.
>
>The central argument of this case, the most high-profile judicial
>proceeding in Belgium since World War II, centers on Ariel Sharon's
>Command Responsibility as General of the Israeli Defense Forces,
>which were in full control of Beirut when the massacres took place.
>
>Although the killings of between 1000-2000 unarmed Lebanese and
>Palestinian civilians were carried out by Lebanese militia units
>directly or indirectly affiliated with the Israeli-allied Christian
>Lebanese Forces (the Phalange), the legal, military, and
>decision-making responsibility ultimately rests with Ariel Sharon
>under established principles of International Law.
>
>This case attempts to realize and implement the principle of
>Universal Jurisdiction, enshrined in the Fourth Geneva Convention,
>for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. As such, it
>represents the latest in a series of attempts to challenge impunity
>for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Other similar cases have
>seen war crimes charges brought against Rwandan officials, Chile's
>ex-president, General Augusto Pinochet; Chad's former president,
>Hissein Habre; and former Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic.
>
>The Belgian and Lebanese lawyers for the 23 Sabra and Shatila
>plaintiffs view the case as an important test of the realization of
>the principle of Universal Jurisdiction, as well as an important
>example of the growing international campaign against impunity for
>war crimes.
>
>For the plaintiffs themselves, it is a long-overdue attempt to attain
>justice for the atrocities that took their family members and scarred
>their lives. A final decision on the case's admissibility for a court
>trial is not expected for several weeks.
>
>For more information, including a court diary and explanation of
>the proceedings, visit http://www.indictsharon.net -- Please notify
>your editors about the website address, in order it can be offered
>as a 'related link' in online stories.
>
>[ends]
>
>--
>http://indictsharon.net is the website of the International Campaign
>for Justice for the Victims of Sabra & Shatila, offering news on the
>case lodged in Belgium against Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon
>and other Israelis and Lebanese responsible for the massacre, killing,
>rape and disappearance of civilians that took place in Beirut between
>16 and 18 September 1982 in the camps of Sabra and Shatila and
>the surrounding area.
>
>
>
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