West can't let Israel get away with murder

The clear diplomatic message sent to Israel by the British government last week burnished the image of the country and safeguarded the interests of British citizens, but definitely wasn't enough to maintain justice in international relations. The expulsion of the Israeli diplomat should be the start of a comprehensive legal action against Israeli leaders and the perpetrators of the crime, not the closure of a criminal file.

International law must take its course against those involved in committing the crime and, more importantly, against the ones who endorsed it. A crime of the severity and nature of Hamas leader Mahmoud Al Mabhouh's assassination in a Dubai hotel room should not be overlooked because it seriously damages international relations.

There is no doubt that the assassination of Al Mabhouh has damaged the national image of several western nations. It cannot be settled as a disagreement over a diplomatic issue or a crime committed by a hideous, out of reach terrorist group, simply because those who took the decision to commit the crime are statesmen — some of whom are received on red carpets at the very same capitals against which they committed the crime. Giving them any kind of justification or impunity would encourage other statesmen and women to act similarly in the future.

After Dubai Police revealed the identities of the perpetrators of Al Mabhouh's murder and the police implicated the Mossad as the likely suspect, many, including myself, started to suspect that Israel would not have done what it did without the approval of authorities in the countries whose passports they used. But, fair enough, the UK's reasonably swift reaction has at least proved that there was no conspiracy between the UK and Israel and that the Jewish state took its decision on its own. This makes the crime even uglier.

Having taken a clear stand against Israel, Britain should handle the situation the way it would handle such a crime if it were committed by another outlaw state. In my opinion, the Mossad using the documents of friendly countries to conduct a terrorist operation in another friendly country is even worse than committing such a crime alone.

Unacceptable

The assassination of Al Mabhouh is a crime by any definition and any government that respects its citizens and the documents it issues should deal with the act as such. Israel has committed a crime against the UK, Ireland, France, Australia and Germany and against their citizens. Such an action is not acceptable from an enemy, so what happens when a so-called friend does something like this? With friends like these, who needs enemies?

The suspects named by the Dubai Police must be indicted and Israel must be obliged to hand over the perpetrators for justice to take action. The countries whose documents were involved in the forgery should spare no effort to penalise the officials of the Jewish state. Isn't it a criminal act if someone forges the passport of a state to commit a crime in another state? Of course it is. Then why shouldn't Israeli officials be held accountable?

The facts revealed by the investigators of the UK's Serious Organised Crime Agency left no room for doubt about Israel's responsibility for the crime. In addition, the way the crime was committed and the level of carelessness exercised by Mossad in using forged foreign passports left no room for Britain to forgive its friend and ally.

The Jewish state has done something that will shake the trust of every man and woman travelling around the world. The moral from this crime is, don't trust officials who take your passport out of your sight to check it. They might have a criminal intention to copy it and use its details in forging another passport to commit a crime using your name. I really don't know if I am within my rights to protest against an official taking my passport for a security check in a foreign airport. Should I alert my government and would my government be able to determine what happened when my passport was taken by an immigration official? Is this what happened with those whose names and travel documents were made public? At least, the investigations revealed that this was the case with the British citizens, who woke up one day last month to see their names and passport details circulated in the media, identifying them as suspects in Al Mabhouh's murder. What a shock!

The western governments involved should act swiftly to restore trust in their travel documents and confidence in their national images, or face chaos as their passports are again forged by outlaw governments such as Israel's, or a criminal gang like the Mossad. Isn't it just a matter of acquiring the sophisticated technology used in the forging? The governments of the countries that were victims of Mossad's action should believe in an Arabic proverb that states: Those who feel they are immune from punishment will naturally act in an impolite manner.