Arab Times

Suits filed against justices:

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Two lawsuits have been filed in Chile against three current or former Israeli Supreme Court justices for endorsing the constructi­on of the West Bank separation barrier and the seizure of goods from Palestinia­ns.

Chile’s Palestinia­n Federation filed a war crimes suit Monday against current Justices Uzi Vogelman and Neal Hendel and retired justice Asher Grunis, who was president of the court in 2012-15.

The group argues that Chile’s internatio­nal agreements allow for suits involving crimes against humanity committed in other countries.

A Chilean-Palestinia­n woman who owns land in the Cremisan Valley, which is near Bethlehem, filed a separate suit against the justices. The lawyer representi­ng her in the case, Nicolas Pavez, said the plaintiffs decided to sue in Chile after exhausting all avenues in Israel over the past eight years, leading to the Israel top court ruling on the legality of the barrier.

“The Supreme Court justices are accused of giving an appearance of legality to this wall that is illegal and that constitute­s a war crime,” Pavez said.

Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon said the suit is a yet another publicity stunt with no legal basis by the Palestinia­n Federation of Chile.

Chile’s Palestinia­n community is among the world’s largest, with about 350,000 immigrants and their descendant­s.

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