ICJP Submits Complaint in Romania Calling for Arrest of Israeli Soldier Over Gaza War Crimes

Bucharest (Quds News Network)- The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) has submitted a criminal complaint to Romanian authorities calling for the investigation and arrest of an Israeli soldier currently in Romania who took part in Israel’s genocide in Gaza and comitted actions which may constitute war crimes under Romanian and international law.

The complaint was filed on Tuesday by the ICJP, working with a local Romanian legal team, as part of its Global 195 initiative.

ICJP submitted evidence of the named suspect, including a photograph of them in Gaza alongside another soldier who was wearing clothing belonging to Palestinian civilians.

The legal group said that the soldier took part in Israel’s assault on Gaza which may constitute war crimes under Romanian and international law.

The submission referred to the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrants issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and urged Romanian authorities to act in accordance with their obligations under the Rome Statute, which Romania has ratified. It also referenced the Romanian Criminal Code’s provisions on war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Under domestic and international law, if a suspected war criminal is on Romanian soil, the country’s legal system must respond, ICJP said.
ICJP’s legal team requested that Romanian police detain the soldier, seize their electronic devices for forensic examination, and initiate a full criminal investigation.

“No one who commits international crimes should be able to travel the world with impunity,” said Tayab Ali, director of ICJP. “Romania now has a legal and moral duty to act. War crimes must be met with justice.”

Lawyers launched the Global 195 last week to pursue legal action around the world against Israelis and Israeli dual nationals accused of involvement in suspected war crimes in Gaza.

At the launch event in London, the ICJP said the Global 195 initiative would seek to use domestic and international legal mechanisms to seek justice against Israeli soldiers and others “spanning the entire Israeli military and political chain of command”.

Speaking at a press conference, Ali began his remarks by paying tribute to the hundreds of Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrikes after it broke the ceasefire.

“Today’s events are a reminder of why initiatives like Global 195 are essential towards creating some form of accountability as this genocide continued unabated and supported by western governments and global corporations,” Ali said.

“The obstruction of international legal institutions in pursuing individuals responsible for war crimes in Palestine, coupled with the failure of national police forces to fulfil their obligations under humanitarian law and universal jurisdiction principles, has allowed impunity for Israeli suspected war criminals to persist.”

“Under international law, states have a duty to investigate and prosecute war crimes, yet these obligations have been systematically neglected. The launch of Global 195 is a necessary legal intervention to remedy this failure.”

Ali added that the Global 195 initiative would target figures ranging “from senior policymakers to operational personnel, who are directly or indirectly responsible for violations of international law”.

He noted that the ICJP had collected 135 eyewitness testimonies from Gaza that corroborated open-source material taken across the Palestinian enclave.

The evidence, according to Ali, includes individuals who may have perpetrated war crimes that include indiscriminate bombardment of civilian areas, destruction of civilian infrastructure, attacks on designated “safe zones”, mass displacement policies and use of starvation against a civilian population.

The ICJP added that it had been working with former detectives from London’s Metropolitan Police to ensure that the evidence it collects meets a high standard and can be used in future cases.

The press conference included legal scholars from Bosnia, Canada, Malaysia, Norway and Turkey, who will be working with the ICJP in bringing cases against nationals suspected of committing war crimes in Gaza.

The 195 figure refers to the number of countries under the jurisdiction of international criminal law.