DAVID Lammy personally informed the Israeli foreign minister that he would not face an arrest warrant while on a secret visit to the UK, reports say.
Gideon Sa’ar, a senior member of Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet, has been in London this week on an unannounced visit.
He met with the UK’s Foreign Secretary on Tuesday, which was only confirmed when The National reached out to the Foreign Office following reports in the Middle East Eye.
The application needed the consent of both the Attorney General and the director of public prosecutions before it could be issued.
At the time, The National reported that Sa’ar was planning on staying in the UK until Saturday but that the visit may be cut short to avoid arrest.
However, it is understood that Lammy personally reassured Sa’ar that the arrest warrant would not be approved – leading him to change his mind.
The attorney general’s office released a statement on Thursday afternoon, which read: “The law officers have declined to provide consent to the prosecution of Gideon Saar.
“International law requires that immunity is accorded to serving ministers for foreign affairs in domestic criminal proceedings irrespective of the subject matter, or gravity, of any complaint.”
The Middle East Eye reports that the decision on the warrant was made on Thursday morning, after which Sa’ar began posting online about his presence in London for the first time.
Both the Middle East Eye and the Times of Israel reported that Lammy informed Sa’ar of the decision, quoting a statement from Sa’ar’s office.
GLAN – one of the groups behind the arrest warrant application – said it has seen evidence that Sa’ar made plans to prematurely leave the UK before he was informed by the attorney general’s decision.
It is unclear whether Sa’ar has left the UK yet. The Foreign Office has made no official statement on the Israeli minister’s meeting with Lammy.
Gearóid Ó Cuinn, director of GLAN, said: “In the midst of Israel inflicting a brutal famine and atrocities on Palestinians the UK officials had an opportunity to deliver a modicum of accountability.
“Instead, they shielded a member of Israel's notorious security cabinet, Gideon Sa’ar, a man who advocates for the halting of humanitarian aid to a starving people and the erasure of Palestine. Other countries need to demonstrate their commitment to the rule of law and ensure his arrest.”
Tayab Ali, director of the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP), said: "The rule of law applies to all, regardless of office or nationality. If political leaders refuse to subject themselves to the legal process, it is their own soldiers who will be left exposed facing justice alone, without immunity or protection.
“There will be no safe haven for suspected war criminals. International law demands accountability, and we are determined to deliver it.”
The majority of UK media has failed to report on Sa’ar’s visit. At the time of writing, only The National, the Middle East Eye, and the Guardian have reported on Sa’ar’s secret meeting with Lammy.
On Thursday, the BBC published an article which wrongly reported that a meeting Sa’ar held with a British Jewish leader had happened in Israel, when it had actually taken place in London.
The BBC updated the article on Friday morning with a clarification, but did not mention that Sa’ar had met with the Foreign Secretary.
The Foreign Office has been contacted for comment.
