The PLO is beginning the process of filing a lawsuit against Foreign Minister
Avigdor Liberman, Palestinian news agency Ma’an reported Sunday, citing a
political adviser to PA President Mahmoud Abbas.
Although the report
offered no details on what the lawsuit would seek grievances for, or in what
legal forum or jurisdiction it would be filed, Nimir Hammad told Ma’an that the
PLO had appointed a legal committee and that lawyers would consult with legal
experts from the United States, Israel and Europe.
Discussing the
possibility of a lawsuit, Hammad told Ma’an, “The international community should
not remain silent before incitement.”
Earlier this month, Hammad said
Abbas’s security had been stepped up following comments by Liberman calling for
Abbas to be replaced. There is no chance for peace as long as Abbas is the
Palestinian Authority president, Liberman said from New York following Abbas’s
speech to the UN General Assembly.
In September, Liberman told Army Radio
that Abbas is “living on borrowed time” and that nothing could save the PA
president’s “rotten regime.”
Leaders in Jerusalem also came down on
Liberman following his statement in New York, primarily from Defense Minister
Ehud Barak who distanced the government from the foreign minister’s comments.
Liberman’s attacks on Abbas, Barak said, harm Israeli interests.
A source
in Liberman’s office issued the following response: “Since the Palestinians
understand that Liberman is revealing to the whole world the true face of Abbas
as a peace obstacle, they are losing their heads and taking ridiculous
steps.”
Herb Keinon contributed to this report.