Arrest Warrant Issued for Netanyahu and Several Other Israeli Officials in Spain

A court in Spain has issued an arrest warrant against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and seven other high-ranking Israeli officials on charges of potential 'war crimes.' The Spanish court issued this warrant in connection with the complaint filed by the survivors of the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara incident. This warrant means that if these Israeli officials arrive in Spain, there is a possibility of their arrest. According to the British newspaper The Independent on Monday, November 25, a court in Madrid ruled that Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister, and seven other Israeli officials who were in political and military positions in the spring of 2010 should be arrested and tried. On May 31, 2010, the 'Mavi Marmara' ship, operated by a Turkish Islamist charity organization linked to the ruling party of Turkey, was en route to Gaza with hundreds of passengers to break the maritime blockade of Gaza when it was attacked by the Israeli military before reaching the port of Gaza. In this incident, nine Turkish citizens were killed and dozens more were injured. Shortly after, another Turkish citizen also died due to the severity of injuries sustained. The Spanish court has issued arrest warrants against not only Benjamin Netanyahu, the current and then Prime Minister, but also against General Moshe Yaalon, the current Minister of Defense, and General Ehud Barak, the then Minister of Defense of Israel. General Eliezer Marom, the then commander of the Israeli Navy, is the highest-ranking military official summoned by the Spanish court. The Spanish judge has also summoned Avigdor Lieberman, the then Foreign Minister, Eli Yishai, the then Interior Minister, Dan Meridor, the then Minister of Information, and Benjamin Begin, the then Minister of State of Israel. Emmanuel Nachshon, a spokesman for the Israeli Foreign Ministry, called the Spanish court's ruling 'provocative' but emphasized that his country would cooperate with Spain to have the arrest warrants revoked and that 'the matter will be resolved soon.' The arrest warrant was issued by the Spanish court at a time when the International Criminal Court closed a similar case presented against Israel by the Comoros Islands. The report of the United Nations inquiry commission, known as the 'Palmer Report,' which was established following the Mavi Marmara incident at the request of Ban Ki-moon, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, stated in September 2011 that the Gaza blockade, because it is in a war zone, is not contrary to international law and that Israel has the right to defend itself. Meanwhile, the 'Palmer Report,' chaired by Jeffrey Palmer, a former Prime Minister of New Zealand, stated that Israel used 'excessive force' in its actions to stop the Mavi Marmara ship; this commission called on Israel to apologize and pay compensation. The United Nations inquiry committee also criticized the actions of the Turkish Islamist charity organization 'IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation' and the Turkish government for sending the Mavi Marmara to Gaza. The Turkish Supreme Court also halted the continuation of the case after a lengthy judicial review, as the Israeli government, with the mediation of Barack Obama, the President of the United States, apologized to Turkey and expressed readiness to pay compensation.