ZGram - 11/19/2001 - "Breaking..."

irimland@zundelsite.org irimland@zundelsite.org
Mon, 19 Nov 2001 19:25:16 -0800


Copyright (c) 2001 - Ingrid A. Rimland

ZGram - Where Truth is Destiny

November 19, 2001

Good Morning from the Zundelsite:

This seems to be a breaking story.  It came to me without a reference, but
Le Soir is mentioned, and the internet stringer who sent it to me is
reliable.

Keep toes and fingers crossed that the court date of November 28 will take
place as planned.  It would be a huge first step in the right direction to
help the world define exactly what "terrorism" looks like - and who the
perpetrators are!

[START]

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is being summoned to a Belgian court to
answer questions over his role in the 1982 Sabra and Shatila massacres, say
Belgian media reports.  Two separate claims against Mr Sharon are being
brought under a 1993 Belgian law, which allows war crimes and genocide to
be tried in Belgium, even if the events took place elsewhere, and even if
none of the victims was Belgian. 

 A hearing has been set for 28 November, and Mr Sharon is expected to be
issued with summons documents by the Belgian ambassador to Israel, says Le
Soir newspaper.  Belgian magistrate Patrick Collignon has been
investigating the two cases, initially to determine whether he has
jurisdiction in the case. 

 The first case, charging Mr Sharon with responsibility for the deaths, was
lodged by a group of Palestinian, Lebanese, Moroccan and Belgian nationals. 

 The second suit, which alleges crimes against humanity, genocide and war
crimes, was filed by 23 survivors of the massacres and five eyewitnesses. 

 The massacres took place in two refugee camps in Lebanon which were home
to thousands of Palestinians. 

 Three months after after Israeli troops invaded Lebanon in 1982, the camps
were stormed by Christian militiamen. 

 Sharon resigns 

 They shot and killed an estimated 800-1,500 of the refugees. 

 Mr Sharon was Israeli defence minister at the time. An Israeli
investigation in 1983 found him indirectly but "personally" responsible for
the deaths, and he was forced to resign. 

 Le Soir says the two separate summonses have been left with the Belgian
ambassador, Wilfried Green, but are expected to be delivered shortly. 

 The case has left the Belgian administration walking on eggshells, the
paper says.  Belgian diplomacy  At the same time as preparing to serve the
summonses, Belgium - as European Union president - is spearheading a new
diplomatic effort to restore the peace process. 

 Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt is heading a senior EU delegation
on a Middle East tour which has included top-level talks in Israel. 

 The delegation, which left Israel on Monday, has held separate talks with
Mr Sharon and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. 

 At the court hearing on 28 November, a Belgian grand jury is scheduled to
decide whether the court has jurisdiction in the case. 

 Mr Sharon's Belgian lawyer is challenging the court's right to be
involved, and the Belgian investigation has been suspended in the meantime. 

 The Mayor of Jerusalem, Ehud Olmert, has angrily attacked the Belgian
Government over the affair, accusing Mr Verhofstadt of heading a
"government of bastards".         

[END]

=====

Thought for the Day:

"No lie you can speak or act but it will come, after longer or shorter
circulation, like a bill drawn on Nature's Reality, and be presented there
for payment - with the answer, No effects!

(Thomas Carlyle in The French Revolution, 1837)