Relatives of victims of PLO terrorism throughout the past two decades filed suit this morning against Yasser Arafat for his crimes against humanity. Atty. Yaakov Rubin filed the suit at Belgium’s Palais de Justice, as Belgian law permits international figures to be charged with such crimes. A decision on a similar suit regarding Prime Minister Sharon’s indirect responsibility for the Phalangists’ Sabra and Shatila massacres in 1982 is expected tomorrow in the same courthouse.

The delegation of eight family members, representing over 30 complainants in Israel and elsewhere, is sponsored by Israel’s Terror Victims Association. At a press conference held on the courthouse steps, TVA head Meir Indor declared that the suit gives the international community a chance to put Arafat where he rightfully belongs: “in prison for mass murder, and not in the parlors of Europe receiving prizes for peace.” Hundreds of Jewish and Christian supporters of Israel gathered there today, holding up signs denouncing Palestinian terror.

Atty. Rubin, speaking with Arutz-7 today, refused to predict whether the suit would be accepted, and said only, “If the Belgians feel they can try Prime Minister Sharon for his alleged indirect responsibility for Sabra and Shatila, then they can certainly try Arafat for direct responsibility for all the terrorist crimes the PLO committed over the years%hellip; These include charges of genocide, murder, and massacre of civilian population…” Rubin said that there exists no statute of limitations for those crimes. Asked about the Belgian media, he said, “They have shown some interest, though not as much as they have in the suit against Sharon.”

Two Belgian victims of PLO terrorism have also co-filed the suit. One of them is Oscar Gudlovitch, who was badly wounded in a PLO attack on a Brussels synagogue in 1982. Atty. Rubin emphasized that it will now not be able to be claimed – as Sharon plans to claim in his own defense – that the suit is not connected to Belgian citizens.

Included in the delegation are Frieda Sviri, who lost her son Doron and her daughter and son-in-law Sharon and Yaniv Bar-Shalom in a terrorist attack on the Modiin road three months ago; Yisrael Liebman, whose brother Shlomo was murdered in Yitzhar (Shomron) in Aug. 1998; Irina Rodin, whose daughter Simona was murdered in the Dolphinarium massacre; Chana Maoz, whose daughter Tehilla was killed in the Sbarro pizzeria attack; and Aryeh Boznach, father of one of the children murdered in the Maalot school massacre in 1974.

BRUSSELS – A group of Israelis filed a complaint in Brussels on Tuesday against Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat and various Palestinian organizations, accusing them of crimes against humanity.

The plaintiffs were taking advantage of a controversial 1993 Belgian law that allows the country’s courts to prosecute foreigners for human rights violations committed outside Belgium.

Lawyers representing about 30 Israelis filed the complaint with a Belgian examining magistrate, holding Arafat and the groups responsible for a series of attacks including an August 9 suicide bombing of a Jerusalem pizzeria that killed 16 people. “The complaint is against Arafat and many organizations like the Palestinian Authority, the Palestinian police, the PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization),” one of the lawyers, Yves Oshinski, told Reuters.

Oshinski, who represents a group called the Terror Victims Association, said the complaint cited attacks dating back to 1974.

Another group, the World Committee for Justice and Peace, plans to file in the coming days a similar complaint in Belgium against Arafat and his lieutenants on behalf of 20 Israeli claimants.

The two complaints come a day before a Brussels court is to hear arguments on whether Prime Minister Ariel Sharon can be prosecuted for alleged crimes against humanity following the filing of three complaints against him.

The Lebanese and Palestinian plaintiffs are also acting under the 1993 law, which has strained relations between Israel and Belgium at a time when Brussels holds the rotating presidency of the European Union and is trying to play a more active role in Middle East peacemaking.

The law was first used in a case against four Rwandans for participating in the country’s 1994 genocide.

Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt got a hostile reception in Jerusalem in early November. The city’s mayor suggested he “go to hell”.

Sharon dealt Belgium a stinging rebuff by urging the EU to stop funding the Palestinian Authority.

The Israeli plaintiffs from the Terror Victims Association include a survivor of a 1974 attack by Palestinian gunmen on high school students on a field trip in northern Israel in which 22 people were killed and 60 wounded.

Others include relatives of soldiers killed by Palestinians resisting Israel’s occupation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Relatives of victims of Palestinian terrorism throughout the past two decades have arrived in Belgium to file suit against Yasser Arafat for his crimes against humanity. The suit is premised on a Belgian law of 1993 that permits international figures to be charged with such crimes. The delegation of eight, representing over 30 relatives in Israel and elsewhere, is sponsored by Israel’s Terror Victims Association and is represented by Atty. Yaakov Rubin. Rubin will file the suit tomorrow at 11 AM at the Palais de Justice, where a similar suit against Prime Minister Sharon is underway pertaining to the Christian Phalangists’ Sabra and Shatila massacres in 1982.

Several Belgium victims of PLO terrorism have also joined the suit against Arafat. These include Oscar Gudlovitch, who was badly wounded in a PLO attack on a Brussels synagogue in 1982. Atty. Rubin emphasized that it will now not be able to be claimed – as Sharon plans to say in his own defense – that the suit is not connected to Belgian citizens. Among the eight family members in Brussels are Irina Rodin, whose daughter Simona was murdered in the Dolphinarium massacre; Chana Maoz, whose daughter Tehilla was killed in the Sbarro pizzeria attack; Aryeh Boznach, father of one of the children murdered in the Maalot school massacre in 1974; and Frieda Sweri, who lost her son, daughter, and son-in-law were killed on the Modiin road a few months ago.

Relatives of victims of Palestinian terrorism throughout the past two decades have arrived in Belgium to file suit against Yasser Arafat for his crimes against humanity. The suit is premised on a Belgian law from 1993 that permits international figures to be charged with such crimes. The delegation of eight, representing over 30 relatives in Israel and elsewhere, is sponsored by Israel’s Terror Victims Association and is represented by Atty. Yaakov Rubin. Rubin will file the suit tomorrow at 11 AM at the Palais de Justice, where a similar suit against Prime Minister Sharon is underway pertaining to the Sabra and Shatila massacres in 1982 by Christian Phalangists.

It should be noted that several Belgium victims of PLO terrorism have also joined the suit. These include Oscar Gudlovitch, who was badly wounded in a PLO attack on a Brussels synagogue in 1982. Atty. Rubin emphasized the importance of this development in that it will not be able to be claimed – as Sharon plans to claim in his own defense – that the suit is not connected to Belgian citizens. Among the eight family members in Brussels are Irina Rodin, whose daughter Simona was murdered in the Dolphinarium massacre; Chana Maoz, whose daughter Tehilla was killed in the Sbarro pizzeria attack; Aryeh Boznach, father of one of the children killed in the Maalot school massacre in 1974; and Frieda Sweri, whose son, daughter, and son-in-law were killed on the Modiin road a few months ago.

The Terror Victims’ Association announced that a suit will be filed in a Belgian court on November 27th by terror victims against PA leader Yasser Arafat.

The suit will charge Arafat for his “crimes against humanity” dating back decades, presenting a class action suit claiming thousands of terror victims that were injured and killed by Arafat since 1966. Terror victims will also file individual suits.

The suit also makes note that following the establishment of the PA, Arafat permitted terror organizations to operate out of the PA rather than fulfill his legal responsibilities as per accords, to arrest terrorists and dismantle the terrorist infrastructure.