Subscribe to Print Edition | Wed., June 20, 2007 Tamuz 4, 5767 | | Israel Time: 02:54 (EST+7)
Haaretz israel news English
web haaretz.com
  Back to Homepage
Print Edition
Diplomacy
Defense Opinion National Arts & Leisure Anglo File Sports Travel  
Magazine Week's End
Q&A
Business Underground Jewish World Real Estate Advertising  
Bookmark to del.icio.us
Last update - 09:22 18/06/2007
Panel might probe 2002 killing of Hamas commander Shehadeh
By Yuval Yoaz, Haaretz Correspondent

The state must inform the High Court of Justice within 45 days on whether it is willing to establish an independent committee to investigate the assassination of leading Hamas militant Saleh Shehadeh in July 2002, including the question of whether a criminal probe is justified.

Justices Dorit Beinisch, Eliezer Rivlin and Ayala Procaccia made the ruling on Sunday.

Shehadeh was killed when the air force dropped a one-ton bomb on his apartment building in Gaza. The explosion destroyed the building and killed 14 other people, most of them women and children. After the attorney general refused to order a criminal investigation into the incident, the High Court was petitioned by Yesh Gvul, a group formed by reserve soldiers who opposed the first Lebanon war.

Advertisement

The ruling handed down at Sunday's hearing rested on an earlier decision issued in December 2006 by a panel headed by then Supreme Court president Aharon Barak. That ruling upheld the government's right to assassinate terrorists, but said that if an assassination resulted in the death of innocent civilians, the decision and its execution must then be "objectively" examined to determine what went wrong. While the court did not clarify what it meant by this, legal experts believe an inquiry committee set up by the Defense Ministry would suffice.

In this case, an inquiry would probably focus on whether the army could or should have known that the bombing was likely to kill innocent people. The army claimed at the time that it had no reason to foresee this result.

At Sunday's hearing, government attorney Shai Nitzan declined to reveal the findings of an internal army probe into Shehadeh's killing. However, under pressure from the justices, he then pledged that the army would consider agreeing to an independent probe whose findings would be given to both the petitioners and the court.

If the army refuses, the government may consider establishing such an inquiry committee without its consent.

Yesh Gvul originally filed its petition in September 2003. However, the court repeatedly postponed hearing it, and finally decided to do so only after issuing its ruling on the legality of assassinations in principle

Bookmark to del.icio.us
Robbed breadwinners
The abbis have truncated the ultra-Orthodox woman's employment options.
Plastic summer
Bizarre trends are nothing new and what was once off-limits may become ultra-chic.
  1.   Aren`t ALL Palestinians considered "secondary targets"? 06:05  |  Natallie Durson 18/06/07
  2.   Nothing Criminal About It From Israel`s Side 07:01  |  Yishai Kohen 18/06/07
  3.   NAtalie and Shehadeh 07:24  |  Garry 18/06/07
  4.   cowards 07:33  |  john 18/06/07
  5.   John no.4 Shehadeh and Cowards 07:47  |  Garry 18/06/07
  6.   To Garry 08:26  |  Petya 18/06/07
  7.   Pinochet and Rumsfeld 08:35  |  Fritz 18/06/07
  8.   Love and Peace (2) 08:42  |  Fritz 18/06/07
  9.   Petya 08:57  |  Des Carroll 18/06/07
  10.   For Petya 08:59  |  Des Carroll 18/06/07
  11.   just proves that the Israel haters are wrong 09:24  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 18/06/07
  12.   For Des Carroll 09:34  |  Garry 18/06/07
  13.   (Dis)proportionality and its effects 09:38  |  Swiss (Dino) 18/06/07
  14.   Des Carroll 09:52  |  Petya 18/06/07
  15.   To Fritz 10:18  |  Peter 18/06/07
  16.   #2 Yishai, it has to be a military target 10:31  |  Johnboy 18/06/07
  17.   Israel needs a more open military-legal system 10:49  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  18.   Israeli military-legal system (2) 10:51  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  19.   A CHALLENGE !! PICK OUT THE CIVILLIANS ON ANY GIVEN DAY 10:54  |  paul harris 18/06/07
  20.   By all means probe 2002 overkilling! High time! 12:17  |  Esther 18/06/07
  21.   Dear Natallie Durson 12:18  |  Joe Sittizen 18/06/07
  22.   N.DURSTON Making ALL Israelis primary targets creates problems. 12:52  |  PETER SM 18/06/07
  23.   Panel probe? 13:25  |  David Nigel Braham 18/06/07
  24.   Hey Natalie Durson & Co 13:39  |  Zebulonguy 18/06/07
  25.   #17 AND THE NAIVE DON WHER DO YOU THINK ITS DIFFERENT?? 13:49  |  paul harris 18/06/07
  26.   Johnboy says "arrested him" 13:50  |  Justin Stephens 18/06/07
  27.   @6, bravo peten´ka. totally agree. 13:55  |  vladimir 18/06/07
  28.   For Durson and similiar ilk 14:13  |  Ronnie 18/06/07
  29.   New hearings by Hamas 14:24  |  Yusef 18/06/07
  30.   Dino, the Swiss 14:26  |  Boozaglow 18/06/07
  31.   Fools 14:38  |  Gene 18/06/07
  32.   25# MORE CRAP FROM HARRIS WHO CAN`T READ 15:32  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  33.   #26 Arrest who, Justin Stephens? 15:33  |  Johnboy 18/06/07
  34.   Don Camillo 15:41  |  Don Quixote 18/06/07
  35.   # 30 Boozaglow Yes, it does !! 15:52  |  Swiss (Dino) 18/06/07
  36.   Don Camillo 16:00  |  rich 18/06/07
  37.   To Don Camillo 16:06  |  Peter 18/06/07
  38.   34# I`d stick to tilting at windmills if i were you 16:07  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  39.   D.Camillo.Selective reading by a selective humanitarian 16:14  |  PETER. S.M 18/06/07
  40.   Murder by state is still murder 16:20  |  John 18/06/07
  41.   #36 Try implementing .... 16:25  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  42.   #38 Go to any human rights web site 16:28  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  43.   Air power and terrorism 16:33  |  Mark Lincoln 18/06/07
  44.   Swiss (Dino) 16:43  |  Boozaglow 18/06/07
  45.   On the contrary CJK...proves they have merit 16:51  |  Tim 18/06/07
  46.   #32 CAMILLO THINKS THAT WHEN THE BULLET WHIZZES PAST YOUR EAR YOU 16:53  |  paul harris 18/06/07
  47.   #38 ISRAELI VICTIME TO GET JUTICE IN PA COURTS SAYS CAMILLO 16:54  |  paul harris 18/06/07
  48.   Don Camillo 16:56  |  rich 18/06/07
  49.   #43 LINCOLN AND ANEW THEORY OF AIR WAR 16:59  |  paul harris 18/06/07
  50.   #13 Swiss, Egry with you, Jews are judged 17:02  |  TOMY 18/06/07
  51.   Are there any normal Aussies around???? 17:08  |  TOMY 18/06/07
  52.   #39 humanitarian law is not selective 17:11  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  53.   #39 PETER SM read this of the girl`s murder 17:23  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  54.   # 19 Paul Harris. The words of a despot. 17:24  |  Nick Ferriman 18/06/07
  55.   Don Camillo....a challenge 17:32  |  rich 18/06/07
  56.   Johnboy 17:35  |  rich 18/06/07
  57.   Don Camillo 17:58  |  Peter 18/06/07
  58.   #54 FERRIMAN LIST THE NUMBER BATTLES OR ENGAGEMENTS YOU HAVE BEEN 18:09  |  paul harris 18/06/07
  59.   # 23 David Nigel Braham 18:13  |  Nick Ferriman 18/06/07
  60.   #55 Rich - Easily done - just as soon as... 18:18  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  61.   # 46 Paul harris. 18:22  |  Nick Ferriman 18/06/07
  62.   #53 BECAUSE DON CAMILLO YOU HIGHLIGHT ON ISRAEL ONLY 18:23  |  paul harris 18/06/07
  63.   EMPTY DEBATE 18:36  |  Mark of Lewiston 18/06/07
  64.   # 44 Boozaglow 18:47  |  Swiss (Dino) 18/06/07
  65.   Nick Ferriman 18:58  |  rich 18/06/07
  66.   # 50 TOMY 18:58  |  Swiss (Dino) 18/06/07
  67.   #60 THER IS NO SUCH ADMISSION 19:03  |  paul harris 18/06/07
  68.   61# BUT BRITAIN IS NOT IN DENIAL. THE IDF IS. 19:04  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  69.   Don Camillo 19:38  |  rich 18/06/07
  70.   Don Camillo 19:44  |  rich 18/06/07
  71.   # 58 Paul Harris 19:48  |  Nick Ferriman 18/06/07
  72.   #69 Why do you scorn human rights? 19:52  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  73.   # 62 Paul harris 20:08  |  Nick Ferriman 18/06/07
  74.   I#67 Harris I wasn`t talking to you. 20:11  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  75.   Nick Ferriman number 59. 20:12  |  David Nigel Braham 18/06/07
  76.   #70 Rich - I`m sorry you are so full of scorn and hate 20:15  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  77.   47 HARRIS GO BACK TO SCHOOL AND LEARN TO SPELL! 20:17  |  Don Camillo 18/06/07
  78.   don camillo 20:25  |  rich 18/06/07
  79.   Don Camillo....why do you scorn 20:26  |  rich 18/06/07
  80.   Don Camillo you are lying jew hater 20:33  |  Peter 18/06/07
  81.   The Real Terrorists are the Israeli Invaders 20:53  |  Dutch 18/06/07
  82.   # 75 David Nigel Braham. Skirting the truth. 21:26  |  Nick Ferriman 18/06/07
  83.   Probe will prove pilots heroes 21:47  |  Seth 18/06/07
  84.   #DON CAMILLO IS JUDGE AND JURY SO HE CLAIMS 22:00  |  paul harris 18/06/07
  85.   #81 DORIS AT THE USUAL COMIC TURN 22:05  |  paul harris 18/06/07
  86.   `#80 - Could you remind me what evidence you need? 22:28  |  Don Camillo