Israel has sharply condemned the issuing of an arrest warrant for former Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, on charges of war crimes during the 2008-2009 Gaza conflict, the BBC reported. Livni, the current leader of Kadima party, was in office during the three-week military conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas.

Israeli Opposition Leader, Tzipi Livini; photo credit: Amorozy

The warrant, later dropped, was issued by a Westminster magistrates’ court at the request of lawyers representing some of the Palestinian victims of Operation Cast Lead, as the offensive was called by Israel, The Guardian reported. It was the first time an Israeli former minister has faced arrest in the UK; Israel’s Foreign Ministry reacted quickly to news, rebuking the British envoy to Israel over the situation and warning that ties between the countries could suffer, Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported today.

According to the Jerusalem Post, Israel warned that this type of action might harm Britain’s diplomatic role in the Middle East.

The British Foreign Office, embarrassed by the episode, according to The Guardian, said in a statement: “The UK is determined to do all it can to promote peace in the Middle East and to be a strategic partner of Israel. To do this, Israel’s leaders need to be able to come to the UK for talks with the British government. We are looking urgently at the implications of this case.”

On Tuesday, Livni, the country’s opposition leader, defended Operation Cast Lead, calling it “necessary” and “meant to restore Israel’s deterrence ability”. Addressing a conference in Tel Aviv she said: “Israel must do what is right for Israel, regardless of judgements, statements and arrest warrants. It’s the leadership’s duty, and I would repeat each and every decision,” reported the BBC.

Livni was due to come to London to speak at the Jewish National Fund conference, The Guardian reported. Her visit was later cancelled due to scheduling problems, her office said on the Ynet website.

Israel’s ambassador to the UK, Ron Prosor, urged Britain to change the law, which has allowed Britain to press charges against non-citizens for alleged crimes committed outside the country, Al Jazeera reported.

According to Palestinians and human rights groups, more than 1,400 people were killed during the conflict, more than half of them civilians, the BBC said. Israel, however, estimated 1,166 casualties with less than 300 civilians among the dead. Three Israeli civilians and 10 Israeli soldiers were also killed, the BBC reported.

A UN-sponsored report, known as the Goldstone report, urged both Israel and the Palestinians to investigate allegations of human-rights violations committed during the conflict, Al Jazeera said. Criticism in the Goldstone report was directed mainly towards Israel, which reportedly used disproportionate force and deliberately targeted Gaza civilians.

In Palestine, President Mahmoud Abbas said, at a meeting of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation’s council,  that his country would only resume peace talks with Israel if the Israelis stop building settlements in the occupied West Bank. Abbas, who shocked his party and much of Palestine when he said in November that he would not seek re-election, dismissed Israel’s partial cessation of building, and said that he was simply following the “road map” to peace, Reuters reported.

Abbas, who has no immediate successor, will likely stay on indefinitely after the end of his term on 25 January 2010.