[JURIST] The Spanish Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld a National Court decision suspending an investigation into a 2002 Israeli air force bombing in the Gaza Strip. The attack killed 15 people, including 14 civilians. The investigation was ordered in January 2009 after a National Court judge determined that the alleged bombing merited judicial investigation, but was suspended by the National Court in June. The Supreme Court’s decision puts a definitive end to the controversial investigation.
The decision to suspend the investigation overruled a May 2009 order by National Court judge Fernando Andreu to continue the investigation despite legal challenges. The court’s decision to suspend the investigation was based on a determination that the court lacked jurisdiction because Israel was already investigating the incident. Spain’s use of universal jurisdiction in similar investigations has been criticized in the past, leading to the passage of legislation to limit the scope of universal jurisdiction to cases in which the victims of a crime include Spaniards or the alleged perpetrators were in Spain.