Last Thursday was a good day for justice and accountability, one that many thought would never come or believed was even possible.
I therefore thought some might be interested in this interview that I did with Al Jazeera English’s The Take on the International Criminal Court’s warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant along with Hamas’ Mohammed Diab Ibrahim Al-Masri (Deif):
While I noted in the interview that I thought that Netanyahu and Gallant would be allowed to visit the United Nations, I am also keen to hear the views of others on this subject.
Given that the United States would likely welcome both, what would happen if Netanyahu entered the premises of the UN to attend, for example, the UN General Assembly next year? Even if the UN sought to enforce the warrant, who would do so on behalf of the UN? Would it be practically possible given where the premises of the UN are located?
Mark Kersten is an Assistant Professor in the Criminology and Criminal Justice Department at the University of the Fraser Valley in British Columbia, Canada, and a Senior Consultant at the Wayamo Foundation in Berlin, Germany. Mark is the founder of the blog Justice in Conflict and author of the book, published by Oxford University Press, by the same name. He holds an MSc and PhD in International Relations from the London School of Economics and a BA (Hons) from the University of Guelph. Mark has previously been a Research Associate at the Refugee Law Project in Uganda, and as researcher at Justice Africa and Lawyers for Justice in Libya in London. He has taught courses on genocide studies, the politics of international law, transitional justice, diplomacy, and conflict and peace studies at the London School of Economics, SOAS, and University of Toronto. Mark’s research has appeared in numerous academic fora as well as in media publications such as The Globe and Mail, Al Jazeera, BBC, Foreign Policy, the CBC, Toronto Star, and The Washington Post. He has a passion for gardening, reading, hockey (on ice), date nights, late nights, Lego, and creating time for loved ones.
Hey,
I was hoping you’d write something……
Technically, the UN could arrest, right? The UNHQ is independent soil and they have their own security. The US aren’t allowed to enter.
I guess the question then is, how do they get him out!
Anyway, thanks for all your work as always. Free tuition.
A