Israel’s deputy PM cancels Britain trip to evade arrest

LONDON - Israel’s deputy prime minister Dan Meridor was forced to cancel his trip to Britain following warnings that he could be arrested for alleged war crimes, a media report said.

Meridor, who is also the Israeli minister for intelligence and atomic energy, pulled out of an event in London Monday after the British Foreign Office and ministry of justice warned him he could face an arrest warrant from pro-Palestinian activists, Daily Mail reported.

Meridor, 63, is the latest Israeli politician to cancel a visit to London because of concerns about possible arrest.

In November last year, former Israeli foreign minister Tzipi Livni pulled out of a trip after a British court issued a warrant for her arrest over alleged war crimes in Gaza.

At that time the then Foreign Secretary David Miliband ordered an “urgent” review of the law, which allows members of the public to bring private prosecutions for alleged war crimes.

Unlike most offences, war crimes carry a so-called universal jurisdiction in British law, which means that foreigners can be arrested in Britain for alleged crimes committed abroad.