Israeli fighter jet
Photo: AP
Spain's top court closes Gaza bombing case
Israel launched sufficient probe into assassination of Hamas leader, Supreme Court says
Spain's top court on Tuesday upheld a lower court's ruling to close the judicial investigation into the 2002 assassination of senior Hamas man Salah Shahade.
The decision marks the closure of a case that threatened to serve indictments against senior Israeli officials.
The Israeli figures who had been named in connection with the case included then-Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, as well as other officials.
The Gaza Strip bombing killed the Hamas leader as well as 14 civilians and injured about 150 others.
Earlier, Spanish Court judge Fernando Andreu argued that what he referred to as the "disproportionate" Gaza bombing may constitute a crime against humanity.
In the latest ruling, Spain's Supreme Court dismissed the petitioned filed two Arab associations, saying that Israeli authorities had launched a substantive and genuine investigation into the bombing and its aftermath.
The court added that "extensive" documents provided by Israel showed that the case had been sufficiently probed.
Minister Ben-Eliezer, who served as defense minister during the assassination operation, lauded the Spanish decision and expressed his gratitude to the Foreign Ministry, Justice Ministry, and to the Spanish government.
"Common sense won out," Ben-Eliezer said. "The State of Israel will continue to safeguard its citizens' lives and continue to pursue senior terror figures while minimizing the damage to innocent civilians.
