Israel War Protest Moves From Streets To Courts
Ryan R. Jones - All Headline News Middle East Correspondent Jerusalem, Israel (AHN) - The spontaneous anti-government protest movement that sprung up in Israel in the aftermath of the summer's Lebanon war has transformed into an organized legal and lobbying campaign aimed at forcing the establishment of a state commission of inquiry. Some speculated that the demonstrations had died down this week due to the lack of activity at protest tents opposite the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem. But attorney Eliad Shraga, chairman of the Movement for Quality Government, which has been leading the effort along with Israel Defense Forces reservists, assured Ha'aretz that the protest is alive and well and has simply "changed tack." Shraga said his group's primary focus at this point is petitioning Israel's Supreme Court against the Winograd Commission set up by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to investigate the handling of the war. The panel of the Winograd Commission was selected by Olmert, and lacks the authority to directly investigate the prime minister or to dismiss senior officials found guilty of negligence or wrongdoing. Shraga maintains that a full independent state commission of inquiry is the only acceptable conclusion to the affair. The Movement for Quality Government is also actively lobbying Knesset members to establish a state commission of inquiry in defiance of the Cabinet's decisions. Meanwhile, group |
