Why Israeli general avoided Heathrow arrest
Tuesday, 19 February 2008
Major-General Almog (left) with Prince Edward at the British Ambassador's residence in Israel last September (Photo by Mati Milstein/British Embassy via Getty Images)
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Lawyers for the victims of an alleged Israeli war criminal criticised British police today for allowing him to slip through the net.
Major-General Doron Almog avoided arrest in September 2005 after he was tipped off that officers planned to detain him on landing at Heathrow airport.
He refused to leave his El Al flight, and remained on board for two hours before returning to Israel.
Leaked documents show police did not board the plane to detain him at the airport because they were worried about the dangers of an armed confrontation.
Maj Gen Almog has been accused by Palestinian campaigners of ordering the destruction of more than 50 homes in the Gaza Strip in 2002.
Law firm Hickman and Rose, who represent Maj Gen Almog's alleged victims, said: "Victims of war crimes allegedly committed by Doron Almog have been very badly let down by the Metropolitan Police Service's failure to keep Mr Almog from finding out about the arrest warrant before it was executed, and to arrest Mr Almog when they had the opportunity to board the plane at Heathrow airport.
"These are serious failures which raise concerns about the effectiveness of the police in cases where international criminal suspects come into the country."
A police decisions log used by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) showed police feared a clash with armed El Al air marshals or Maj Gen Almog's security guards.
Detective Superintendent John MacBrayne, in charge of the operation, was unable to confirm whether his team had a right to board after El Al refused them entry.
He wrote: "Another consideration (was) that El Al flights carried armed air marshals, which raised issues around public safety.
"There was also no intelligence as to whether Mr Almog would have been travelling with personal security as befitted his status, armed or otherwise."
Maj Gen Almog planned to visit the UK to make social and charitable visits to Jewish communities in Manchester and Solihull.
Lawyers acting for the Palestinian campaigners, who say their homes were destroyed illegally in retaliation for an Israeli attack, lobbied the Metropolitan Police to get involved.
The Met initially refused to act due to pressures on counter-terrorism teams after the London bombings, but a judge eventually issued an arrest warrant for a private prosecution.
Det Supt MacBrayne wrote: "The plan was to intercept Mr Almog at the immigration desk where he would then be escorted to Heathrow police station. Once at the police station, he could receive legal advice whilst a decision was made to execute the warrant."
But news of the planned arrest was leaked to the Israeli Embassy and he was warned of the plan.
The law firm today criticised police for failing to maintain a high enough level of secrecy over the arrest warrant.
But the IPCC investigation, which concluded last summer, found no proof that officers had leaked information.
A spokeswoman said: "The IPCC has concluded its investigation into a complaint arising from the failure by police to execute an arrest warrant for war crimes in respect of retired Israeli general, Doron Almog, on September 11 2005.
"The IPCC found no evidence of any police officers or member of police staff improperly disclosing information with regard to executing the warrant.
"The IPCC was further satisfied that there was no breach of the Police Code of Conduct by officers failing to enter the aircraft to execute the warrant."
