Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman

Argentine prosecutors are considering charging Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman with war crimes and torture if he flies to Buenos Aires for the G20 summit this week.

Iran Press / America:  The move comes after advocacy group Human Rights Watch wrote to a federal prosecutor arguing that the Argentinian courts should invoke a universal jurisdiction statute in Argentinian law, to seek prosecution of the Crown Prince for mass civilian casualties caused by the Saudi-led coalition’s campaign in Yemen, and for the torture of Saudi citizens, including Washington Post columnist, Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on 2 October.

The writ presented by Human Rights Watch (HRW) was received at the court of federal judge Ariel Lijo, who forwarded it to federal prosecutor Ramiro González. The prosecutor must now decide if the principle of universal jurisdiction, enshrined in Argentina’s constitution, applies in the case of the crown prince, according to a report by The Guardian.

Since March 2015, the Saudi-led coalition has carried out scores of indiscriminate and disproportionate airstrikes on civilians and civilian objects in Yemen, hitting homes, schools, hospitals, markets, and mosques,” a HRW statement said. “Many of these attacks – if carried out with criminal intent – indicate possible war crimes. The coalition has also imposed and maintained a naval and air blockade on Yemen that has severely restricted the flow of food, fuel, and medicine to civilians. Millions of civilians face hunger and disease.”

A source from President Mauricio Macri’s office Monday declined to comment on the request for Mohammed bin Salman’s arrest should he land on Argentinian soil. 211/102

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