Complaint submitted in Romania calling for arrest of Israeli soldier
A criminal complaint has been submitted to Romanian authorities calling for the investigation and arrest of a suspected Israeli soldier currently in Romania.
The complaint was filed on Tuesday by the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP), working with a local Romanian legal team, as part of its Global 195 initiative.
ICJP submitted evidence of the named suspect, including a photograph of them in Gaza alongside another soldier who was wearing clothing belonging to Palestinian civilians. The legal group alleged that the individual took part in Israeli military operations which may constitute war crimes under Romanian and international law.
The submission referred to the International Criminal Court's (ICC) arrest warrants issued for senior Israeli officials, and urged Romanian authorities to act in accordance with their obligations under the Rome Statute, which Romania has ratified. It also referenced the Romanian Criminal Code's provisions on war crimes and crimes against humanity.
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Under domestic and international law, if a suspected war criminal is on Romanian soil, the country's legal system must respond, ICJP said.
ICJP's legal team requested that Romanian police detain the individual, seize their electronic devices for forensic examination, and initiate a full criminal investigation.
"No one who commits international crimes should be able to travel the world with impunity," said Tayab Ali, director of ICJP. "Romania now has a legal and moral duty to act. War crimes must be met with justice."
Global 195 was launched last week as an international coalition to pursue legal action around the world against Israelis and Israeli dual nationals accused of involvement in suspected war crimes in Gaza.
Are Netanyahu and Gallant immune from ICC arrest warrants under international law? Read More »
The 195 figure refers to the number of countries under the jurisdiction of international criminal law.
ICJP has collected 135 eyewitness testimonies from Gaza that corroborated open-source material taken across the besieged enclave, Ali said at Global 195's launch last week.
He said that suspected individuals may have perpetrated war crimes including indiscriminate bombardment of civilian areas, destruction of civilian infrastructure, attacks on designated 'safe zones', mass displacement policies and use of starvation against a civilian population.
This latest legal project is one of several that have been launched since Israel began its bombardment of Gaza in 2023.
Last month, MEE spoke to Dyab Abou Jahjah, president of the Hind Rajab Foundation, which has been pursuing legal cases against Israeli soldiers suspected of perpetrating war crimes.
Like the ICJP, Jahjah said their foundation had compiled over 8,000 pieces of evidence from social media related to alleged war crimes by Israeli soldiers in Gaza.
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