Knesset to push for international claims against Ahmadinejad

MK Yohanan Plesner to urge European Parliament members to file lawsuits against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for violating UN treaty for prevention of genocide by threatening to destroy Israel

Amnon Meranda|Published: 01.20.10 , 08:23

Kadima MK Yohanan Plesner is working on pushing an international parliamentary initiative in hopes of leading to legal measures against Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

The idea was born during a session in the parliamentary lobby for the promotion of ties with Europe, headed by MK Plesner. Former Canadian Minister of Justice Irwin Cutler participated in one of the sessions, and according to Plesner, helped draft the initiative.

"The lawsuits, if filed, will be based on the claim that Ahmadinejad is violating the UN treaty for the prevention of genocide. There are a number of statements made by him calling for de facto genocide – thus violating the treaty systematically," Plesner said.

The MK said he plans to contact hundreds of European Parliament members over the coming days, including the chairmen o the House of Representatives, and urge them to get their countries on board, and file claims against the Iranian president.

According to Plesner, Cutler has already presented to him an opinion drafted in which he support's Israel's stance. "This is a 10-page document that presents evidence of Ahmadinejad's calls for the destruction of Israel," Plesner said.

This is not the first time the former Canadian minister speaks out against Ahmadinejad. Speaking at a counter-terrorism conference at the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya in 2006, Cutler said Ahmadinejad should be prosecuted in the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

He said that the world must not wait for Ahmadinejad, who has openly declared that he plans to develop nuclear weapons and believes Israel should be wiped off the map, to realize his vision.

He added that the world should not wait for Iran to act, but should preemptively prosecute Ahmadinejad for violating the international treaty for the prevention of genocide.

It should be noted that such initiatives have been raised in the past, but have not been realized. Plesner believes that this time, things will be different. "A lawsuit by the State of Israel against the Iranian president will be the final step. Our main goal is to get European countries to file lawsuits, to ensure that Israel isn't the first or only state to do so, since Iran is not just Israel's problem," he said.

The MK added that Israel has "strong legal grounds. The Knesset speaker has been briefed on the initiative, and views it in a positive light. We must move from defense to offense against Iran, and I hope the European countries participate. It's about time the Iranian president is held accountable in the international court. "