Bar association plans to sue Israel over killing of judge

AMMAN — The Jordan Bar Association (JBA) is planning to sue Israel for several violations, including the killing of Jordanian judge Raed Zuaiter.

The JBA’s freedoms committee has started examining international conventions the Kingdom has ratified in order to file the lawsuit against Israel, according to its president, Noor Imam.

“We want to activate the law against the infringements committed by the Zionist entity,” she told The Jordan Times on Sunday, noting that investigations into the killing of Zuaiter are still ongoing despite the passage of one year since his death.

Zuaiter, a judge at the Amman Court of First Instance, was shot dead by Israeli soldiers in March last year at the King Hussein Bridge crossing linking Jordan and the West Bank.

Israel claimed that he tried to seize the gun of a soldier, but an eyewitness refuted that claim, telling The Jordan Times at the time that Zuaiter was provoked and beaten by two soldiers before they shot him dead.

Tel Aviv had agreed to Jordan’s request to carry out a joint probe into the incident, but no official announcement has been made on its findings.

“Jordanians have the right to know the outcome of this case and we want to ensure that they do,” Imam said.

As for the laws the panel has been examining, Imam said they include the Geneva conventions related to protecting civilians during occupation and wars, in addition to the Jordanian Criminal Procedure Law.

If the case is successfully filed, it will also include Israel’s latest aggression on Gaza and violations committed against holy sites in Jerusalem, according to the lawyer.