British Foreign Minister Pledges to End Ability of Magistrates to Issue Arrest Warrants against Political Leaders in Israel Livini Case

On December 15, 2009, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband announced that the British government would no longer permit legal harassment of Israeli and other foreign officials by British judges invoking universal jurisdiction. The British government will review and change the British law allowing judges to issue arrest warrants against foreign officials “without any prior knowledge or advice by a prosecutor.” Mr. Miliband made his statements in the context of the cancellation on December 15, 2009 of a visit to London by Tzipi Livni, the former foreign ministry of Israel and currently the country’s opposition leader. ...more...