Gideon Sa’ar “is directly linked to mass death, destruction and suffering in Palestine; we have submitted extensive evidence detailing his role in and awareness of this.”
Human rights groups filed an urgent request for an arrest warrant for Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar during his current visit to the UK, citing his direct role in the genocidal assault on Gaza.
The charges focus in particular on the siege of the Kamal Adwan Hospital at the end of 2024, “which culminated in the abduction and torture of the hospital director, Dr Hussam Abu Safiyeh,” the Global Legal Action Network (GLAN) and Hind Rajab Foundation (HRF) said in a statement on Wednesday.
BREAKING: The #HindRajabFoundation and the @GLAN_LAW network a.o. have filed for an arrest warrant in the UK against Israeli FM Gideon Sa’ar for war crimes in Gaza, including the siege of Kamal Adwan Hospital and the torture of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiyeh.
For more info… pic.twitter.com/hfvzwwfUcj
— The Hind Rajab Foundation (@HindRFoundation) April 16, 2025
With support from medical doctors, the organizations formally submitted a request to the UK’s Attorney General and Director of Public Prosecutions seeking immediate approval to apply for a warrant at Westminster Magistrates Court. The rights groups also filed a complaint with the London Metropolitan Police.
Sa’ar, a senior member of the Israeli security cabinet, was seen boarding a plane for the UK on Monday and reported to have met with government officials, including the Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, the next day, according to the statement.
‘Central Role’
The groups said that as a security cabinet member “alongside Benjamin Netanyahu — wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza—Gideon Sa’ar is deeply implicated in the collective decisions that led to mass civilian death and suffering following October 7, 2023.”
They said his “central role in shaping and defending” the government’s military policy makes him “a key figure in the leadership responsible for a campaign the ICJ has found plausibly genocidal.”
URGENT: We are told that Gideon Sa’ar is now cutting short his visit & fleeing the UK. He is a suspect in a live investigation of serious crimes. If seen contact the London Met Police immediately. Please do not approach the suspect as he is likely accompanied by armed security. pic.twitter.com/djC3T6U0c9
— GLAN | Global Legal Action Network (@GLAN_LAW) April 16, 2025
“Mr Gideon Sa’ar’s is directly linked to mass death, destruction and suffering in Palestine; we have submitted extensive evidence detailing his role in and awareness of this,” Gearóid Ó Cuinn, GLAN’s Director, said. “UK officials are failing to abide by the law by offering handshakes instead of handcuffs – this is why we have asked the courts to urgently step in.”
The submissions argue that Sa’ar “is criminally responsible” for acts, which “are crimes under the jurisdiction of England and Wales.”
Detention and Torture of Dr Abu Safiya
These include the attack on Kamal Adwan Hospital between October 8, 2024 and December 27, 2024, the detention and torture of Dr Hussam Abu Safiyeh, director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital, the “wanton destruction involved in the acquisition of large swathes of Gaza through the creation of a ‘buffer zone,’” as well as “the attacking of objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population.”
Under Sa’ar’s leadership, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs posted content in support of the siege of Kamal Adwan Hospital, the statement noted.
Dr. Abu Safiya Held in ‘Inhumane Conditions,’ Subjected to Torture in Israeli Detention
The groups submitted evidence showing “how this hospital was besieged, attacked, and ultimately stormed, evacuated and burned by Israeli forces”.
It pointed out that individual attacks launched throughout this period involved quadcopters and other aerial attacks, which killed and injured doctors and patients.
Hospitals ‘Systematically Destroyed’
The hospital’s director, Dr Hussam Abu Safiyeh, “was taken, imprisoned in inhumane conditions and tortured; he was even held at the notorious Sde Teiman Detention Camp in Israel.”
Since October 7, 2023, the groups said, Israel has “systematically destroyed” Gaza’s hospitals, targeting healthcare facilities and killing and injuring medics.
Some hospitals have been destroyed with airstrikes, whereas others are subjected to evacuation orders, siege warfare, sniper attacks and shelling, they added.
Sa’ar ‘Cannot Walk Freely’
“Gideon Sa’ar cannot walk freely in London while Palestinian civilians lie buried under rubble. His role in the starvation, displacement, and killing of innocent people in Gaza demands accountability, no official title can excuse these atrocities,” Dyab Abou Jahjah, Founder and Chair of the Hind Rajab Foundation, stated.
Gideon Sa’ar is reportedly being assisted by the Israeli embassy to flee the United Kingdom, following the case filed against him for war crimes by the @HindRFoundation, @GLAN_LAW and other partners.
War criminals can run, but justice will catch on to them, sooner than later. pic.twitter.com/nHk1ExLnxX— Dyab Abou Jahjah (@Aboujahjah) April 16, 2025
He is “already the subject of a complaint” to the International Criminal Court (ICC) by HRF, alleging his involvement in decisions that led to mass civilian displacement and siege conditions in Gaza and his support for policies that targeted civilian infrastructure, the statement noted.
By late Wednesday, Abou Jahjah posted on X that Sa’ar was “reportedly being assisted by the Israeli embassy to flee the United Kingdom, following the case filed against him for war crimes.”
“War criminals can run, but justice will catch on to them, sooner than later,” Abou Jahjah stated.
Meeting with UK Officials
On Thursday, Sa’ar posted on X that he “was delighted” to have met earlier with Priti Patel, “the former minister and now the shadow foreign secretary for the opposition Conservative Party.”
“Patel is a staunch friend of Israel who consistently supports Israel and its right to self-defense. I spoke with Patel about ways to enhance cooperation in the consciousness-raising campaign for Israel and its justice, and I invited her to visit Israel,” he said, alongside a photo of the two.
שמחתי להיפגש היום בלונדון עם @pritipatel, השרה לשעבר והיום מזכירת החוץ בממשלת הצללים מטעם המפלגה השמרנית שבאופוזיציה. פאטל היא ידידת ישראל מובהקת שמגבה בעקביות את ישראל ואת זכותה להגנה עצמית.
שוחחתי עם פאטל על הדרכים להעצים את שיתוף הפעולה בלוחמת התודעה למען ישראל וצדקת דרכה… pic.twitter.com/A5wBKPZ44L— Gideon Sa’ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) April 17, 2025
‘Rule of Law Matters’
The legal action against Sa’ar was supported by Dr Ghassan Abu Sitta, a British-Palestinian plastic and reconstructive surgeon who practiced in Gaza on multiple occasions, including the weeks after October 7, 2023.
“This is an opportunity to show that the rule of law matters. It’s an opportunity to put a stake in the sand; as citizens and as people of conscience, and show that this country believes in the moral values it has signed up for,” said Dr Azra Zyada, a medical doctor of Palestinian descent, and independent consultant in Healthcare Systems and Strategy who assisted in gathering evidence from Gaza.
“We cannot turn a blind eye towards injustice, and if we tolerate this, then our children will be next,” Dr Zyada added.
In October last year, HRF filed a complaint with the ICC against 1,000 Israeli soldiers for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide in Gaza. Since then, it has consistently filed cases in various countries against Israeli soldiers who were identified in those countries, some while on vacation.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
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