(Ha'aretz) Ze'ev Segal - Israeli law does not permit convicting the leader of a criminal or terrorist organization for crimes carried out by that organization "when he himself was not personally involved in the specific crimes themselves," even when it is clear that he gave his blessing to the crimes and provided his people with assistance and encouragement. Barghouti was therefore convicted of premeditated murder only in the three cases in which the court found evidence linking him directly to the specific acts. The court judged Barghouti according to ordinary standards of criminal justice, as required by a country in which the rule of law prevails. The court stated that an individual cannot be convicted of solicitation to murder because he issued a general call for attacks against Israel. For a conviction, the individual must be charged with providing the means to commit a specific crime.
2004-05-21 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive