JAKARTA: Indonesian nationals have filed a criminal complaint against Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, their lawyer said on Thursday, as he seeks a probe over his clients’ reports of torture and illegal detention by Israel forces.
The nine men, including activists and journalists, were part of the Global Sumud Flotilla sailing toward Gaza in May to breach Israel’s maritime blockade to deliver food and critical medical aid.
Along with more than 400 activists from across the world, they were abducted by Israeli forces in international waters off the coast of Cyprus on the final leg of their journey, and said that they were tortured, threatened and abused while in captivity, some for days.
The Indonesian activists and their lawyers approached Indonesia’s Attorney General Sanitiar Burhanuddin on Wednesday to file a criminal complaint against Netanyahu, alleging crimes against humanity.
“We hope that the Attorney General’s Office will follow up on our complaint and conduct further investigation, including a detailed examination of the witnesses. The victims were electrocuted, had their heads stepped on, were made to kneel for three hours, and were left in the scorching heat in Cyprus,” lawyer Shaleh Al-Ghifari told Arab News.
“We are asking Indonesia to take on a role by enforcing its own criminal law.”
Under Indonesia’s criminal code, the country’s courts have “universal jurisdiction” over cases that involve crimes committed outside the country’s borders.
Indonesia’s criminal code also covers other crimes that are relevant to the violence committed by Israeli forces against the activists, including torture and illegal interception in international waters, among other things, Al-Ghifari added.
“It is also important to consider that under international political law right now, there is not yet any serious law enforcement underway against Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli soldiers who are committing acts of violence and abduction as they please against both the citizens of Gaza and also these activists,” he said.
Should the Indonesian attorney general decide to move forward with the case and launch an investigation, it could potentially lead to an arrest warrant for Netanyahu.
Netanyahu is already the target of a November 2024 arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court, over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Indonesia is not a member of the court, and to date, no ICC member state has enforced the warrant.
“Indonesia must have a strong stance in support of independence for (Palestine),” Herman Budianto, one of the nine Indonesian activists, told reporters.
“This includes pressuring colonizer Israel so they do not commit violence against anyone in support of (Palestinian) independence, especially when the actions are in line with humanitarian values.”
