|
Arab Lawyers Request Participation in U.S. Investigations
CAIRO, Sept 19 (IslamOnline) - The Arab Lawyers Union, as well as a number of Arab human rights organizations, said on Wednesday that they are studying the possibility of forming a delegation to follow-up on U.S. investigations into the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington.
The head of the Egyptian lawyers syndicate, Sameh Ashour, also a member of the Union Of Arab Lawyers, told IslamOnline that the union would submit a request to U.S. authorities to allow the Arab delegation to follow-up FBI investigations into the attacks.
Ashour said that since Arabs and Muslims are being accused for the attacks, it is imperative that Arab delegations participate in the U.S. investigation to make sure that justice is maintained.
He added that the delegation would include the president of the union, the secretary general and a number of Arab heads of syndicates, as well as international law experts.
The director of the Human Rights Law Information Research center, Ameer Salem, called upon the U.S. government to pursue legal means and not to resort to the mentality of revenge.
Salem said, "America should not put aside or forget the principles of international law while it [mourns] its victims."
Moreover, he urged the U.S. legal system to tackle the entire issue and not leave it up to the military and security powers to deal with the situation.
Salem added that there are negotiations currently taking place between a number of Arab and Egyptian human rights organizations, and the Arab lawyers union, in order to form the follow-up committee that will supposedly be responsible for guaranteeing the objectivity of the investigations.
Referring to investigations concerning the downed Egypt Air flight over New York on October 31, 1999, "International human rights organizations, such as Amnesty International and the American lawyers committee were allowed to attend and participate in the authenticity of the legal investigations in Egypt.
"Therefore, we demand that the American judiciary permits us to follow-up the investigations with Arabs and Muslims to be sure of the credibility and the objectivity of the legal process," Salem added.
A specialist in international law, Mohamed Noor Farhat, said that when the crime has international ramifications, and if the perpetrators or victims are foreign, then the country on which the crime was committed usually accepts the involvement of foreign legal bodies or human rights organizations in investigations.
However, Farhat expressed doubts that the United States would allow any Arab delegation to participate in the investigations, especially due to the gravity of the attacks that led to the destruction of major American national symbols.
|
