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Netanyahu will not be arrested – despite petition

The federal government’s official coverage is to advocate a two-state answer to the Israeli-Palestinian battle and the notice stated that it “will reinforce this message to Mr Netanyahu throughout his go to” in September.

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Nearly 80,000 people had by Monday signed a petition urging the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for war crimes when he visits London next month.

British citizen Damian Moran submitted an online petition through the British Parliament e-petitions website calling for the prime minister to be arrested over alleged war crimes during the Gaza conflict in 2014.

Published on 7 August, the petition calls for Netanyahu to be arrested “for war crimes upon arrival in the UK for the massacre of over 2,000 civilians in 2014”.

“I welcome the Government’s unambiguous response which reiterates its support for Israel’s right to self-defense and condemnation of Hamas’s terrorist tactics”, former cabinet minister Eric Pickles told The Telegraph newspaper.

“I honestly don’t expect him to get arrested because of the universal jurisdiction laws….”

If a petition garners 100,000 signatures, the issue will be considered for a debate in Parliament, but there is no guarantee it must be debated. An embassy spokesman noted that despite the vociferous activism against Israel, trade and other cooperation between Israel and the UK are going dramatically.

Earlier this month, the Israeli Ministry for Foreign Affairs said in a statement that the petition has “no real meaning”, adding, “Bilateral ties between Britain and Israel are closer than ever before”.

In a statement, the UK government said: “Under UK and worldwide law, visiting heads of foreign governments, such as Prime Minister Netanyahu, have immunity from legal process, and can not be arrested or detained”.

Israel launched army motion within the on July eight final yr. Greater than 2,000 Palestinians died, as did 66 Israeli troopers and 7 civilians together with one youngster.

The British government, which has been a staunch ally of Prime Minister Netanyahu, made it very clear in its response to the e-petition that this would not happen.

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The UK government said it recognized Israel’s right to defend itself against attack.

The petition was launched earlier this month by British citizen Damian Moran and is posted on the government’s website.—Reuters  File