We can sue Israel abroad without the approval of the Egyptian government

I made a quick interview with Ambassador Ibrahim Youssery on my Egyptian Chronicles blog and I did not forget to ask about the POWs case.

Ambassador Ibrahim Youssery took this stand this year to sue the Egyptian government in the court for exporting the Egyptian Natural gas to Israel despite the huge public refusal. Ambassador Youssery is a retired Ambassador since 1995 and currently work as international law lawyer. Already I should mentioned that he headed for three years as Head of the Egyptian Government committee for the revision of bilateral and multilateral treaties and the Deputy chief of the Egyptian delegation in the negotiation concerning the execution of the Taba award.

I asked him in the interview about several issues current causing buzz in Egypt whether from the exportation of the natural gas to Israel or the Salam 98 Ferry or the Um Rashrash case or the POWs Case. I asked him about the Egyptian POWs Case because I know from his long international legal expertise we can benefit.

Already my main question to him was about the possibility of suing Israel outside Egypt in international courts whether the ICC or the IJC

Here are the questions concerning the POWs

EC :The Egyptian POWs case is from the most important neglected cases in Egypt, as international law expert; can we go to the IJC or the ICC to sue Israel as citizens not as a state??

IY : We can peruse this matter by bringing it to international courts. There are some technical difficulties to engage the ICC, but the IJC has no jurisdiction here. I agree fully that the Egyptian POWs case is one of the most important neglected cases in Egypt. But we can always engage the Israeli criminals before any court (Pinochet , Mengistu, Sharon cases)

EC: Do we need the approval of the Egyptian state??

IY: We do not need the approval of the Egyptian state.

EC: Can the ICC investigate it without the approval of the Egyptian State??

IY: Yes the ICC can investigate it without the approval of the Egyptian State.

EC :If we go there, are the testimonies of the people of Sinai and the ex-POWs who witnessed the war crimes against our soldiers and officers plus the mass graves in Al Arish and across the rest of Sinai are enough to support our case and open an international investigation for War crimes, especially that there are some Israelis who confirmed our stories??

IY : Yes, the court can accept the testimonies of the people of Sinai and the ex-POWs who witnessed the war crimes against our soldiers and officers plus the mass graves in Al Arish and across the rest of Sinai.

EC: Why do you think the Egyptian government refuse to take it seriously despite it is a win case??

IY : The Egyptian government refuses to take it seriously despite it is a win case, because they don’t care a bit about people and they can not stand any American pressure.

As you can see we can sue Israel abroad in front of the ICC without the approval of the Egyptian State and we can win it with the testimonies of the witnesses and the evidence represented in the mass graves of our troops across Sinai

You can read the rest of the interview here folks

Freedom to our Egyptian POWs in the Israeli prisons

From Egyptian Leftist

Freedom to our Egyptian POWs in the Zionist prisons
Freedom to our Egyptian POWs in the Zionist prisons

Till now there is no official confirmation or denial regarding what Samir Kuntar had said about the Egyptian POW in the Israeli prison.

As an Egyptian citizen I demand that the Egyptian Government to be honest with us.

It is unfair that Egypt mediates between Israel and Hamas working too hard to swap one single Israeli POW with hundreds of Palestinian POWs without any consideration to its POW in Israel Eyad Abu El-Hassan

More info about Eyad

At last I found some info about Eyad Abu El-Hassan thanks to Nawra Nagam who did a real scoop as Egyptian blogger and had some sort of an interview with Samr Kuntar in Lebanon last week.

Al-kuntar shared with Nawara what he knows about Eyad Abu El-Hassan.

Eyad is from Egyptian Rafah.He was arrested by the IDF in 1989 when he entered Gaza with Ayman Yunis. Both were young men whose ages were 20 years old. They were planning to do some sort of an operation against Israel. They were actng on their own. No one sent them or they knew someone there.

In the jail both young men had to choose which team they will belong to , Fatah or Hamas. Ayman Chose Fatah where as Eyad chose Hamas.

Al-Kuntar believes Ayman was released because he chose Fatah where as till now Eyad is in jail because he chose Hamas.

Whether he chose Hamas or Fatah, Eyad is the repsonsbility of his country. Egypt should work with all possible way to return him back just like Hezbollah did with Al-Kuntar taking in consideration that according to Al-Kuntar all what Eyad did was traspasing the border.

Eyad now is 39 years old , he left Egypt as young man and now he is officially a man.

By the way I am still surprised with this official and unofficial silence in the media , even the independent and opposition newspapers ignored him.

Already I wonder where his family is all that time. If he is really from Rafah,then he is from a tribe and tribes there care for their members and do not stand still like this.

More info about the Egyptian and Saudi POWs in Israel : Eyad Abu El-Hassan

I found more information about the Egyptian POW whom Samir Kuntar mentioned on TV from two weeks ago as a forgotten Egyptian POW.

In statement for Islamonline Samir Kuntar said that there were two Arab POWs in the Israeli Jails , one is from Saudi Arabia and the other is from Egypt.

The name of the Egyptian POW is Eyad Abu El-Hassan.He was captured in 1989 in Gaza after crossing the

Samir Al Kuntar
Samir Al Kuntar

borders and trying to join the resistance there. He is currently in the Hadarim Prison , the same prison where Al-Kuntar was held.

Wow since 1989 , that means he has been there for the last 19 years.Strangely he was arrested according to Al-Kuntar with another Egyptian Young man then who was released from many years ago leaving Eyad alone !!

It is sad thing but there is not official confirmation yet from the government despite I believe that the MB members in the people’s assembly in Cairo will raise the issue in the next Parliament session.

The Media strangely in Egypt did not speak about him yet or investigate information about him. Already I feel from the name “Eyad” that he is from the locals of Sinai , still why no one has reported about him. The tribes of Sinai are very careful on their members and their safety.

El-Ataway

Kuntar spoke also about the Saudi POW, he did not meet him but he knew and heard about him from the Palestinian POWs. He is called Abd El-Rahman Al-Ataway ,he was arrested on the borders with Egypt on the 13/5/ 2005.I found more information about him in the Marwan Al Barghouti Public Campagin website.Already Prince Soud El-Faisal Spoke about him in a Press conference on the 4/4/2006. I do not know his age but in the Website they are saying that he was 36 years old , so now I think he is 38 year old. He is from the north of the Kingdom , from Tabuk ,He is divorced and got one daughter who lives with her mother. He did not complete his education.

He was arrested and til now he is in jail in Israel with no trial or what so ever , I do not know why Saudi Arabia does not use mediators to get him back like Hezbollah if it does not want any direct relations with Israel seriously. It could use Egypt.

Al-Ataway had been on hunger strike several times and he was transferred to different hospitals where he met with the Palestinian POWs and shared his doomed story with him. They told Kuntar who is considered the leader of the Arab POWs in the Israeli Prison.

Eyad and Al-Ataway should return home immediately.

Al Jazeera English – Focus – Egypt Veteran’s Fight For Justice

Al-Jazeera international report about the story of  two 1967 war veteran and what they suffered from mistreatment against all international and ethic laws in Atlit prison

Please read the testimony of Amin Mohamed Darwish

Al Jazeera English – Focus – Egypt Veteran’s Fight For Justice

Here is another testimony for an old Palestinian man Fares Salih ,it includes what happened in Gaza , it is very interesting concerning the looting and killing the Israeli soldiers and officers did in Gaza