Financial news

Criminal complaint filed against Israel president during visit to Switzerland – JURIST

The Swiss Federal Prosecutor’s office confirmed Friday to Swiss media outlet Keystone-SDA that a criminal complaint against Israeli President Isaac Herzog has been filed. The announcement came during the week long annual World Economic Forum 2024 (WEF) held in Davos, Switzerland, which President Herzog attended.Swiss authorities are not providing further information on the group who filed the complaint or the nature of the charges. However Keystone-SDA alleged that the group Legal Action Against Crimes Against Humanity has claimed responsibility for the filing, with the group stating, “We are convinced that Switzerland has an obligation to conduct an investigation.”Herzog delivered a speech at the WEF which asserted Israel’s position against Hamas and addressed the recent genocide allegations brought against it in the ICJ. He called on the international community to reject the allegations and called for the return of the Israeli hostages taken by Hamas.South Africa officially filed a case against Israel before the ICJ in December 2023, accusing Israel of genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza and breaching the UN Genocide Convention. In its application, South Africa said that Israel’s retaliation following the October 7, 2023 attacks are “genocidal in character because they are intended to bring about the destruction of a substantial part of the Palestinian national, racial and ethnical group.”In response to the allegations and criminal complaint, a spokesman for the Israeli president told media outlet the Times of Israel that “the president of the State of Israel participated in the World Economic Forum as planned and represented the position of the State of Israel and the importance and justness of the struggle to secure the release of the hostages.”