The '' arrêt '' of the '' '' of Paris , the investigative arm of the court of appeal , on October 20 , 2000 authorized the complaint of the victims of UTA Flight 772 against Muammar Gaddafi . Considering that " originally absolute , the immunity of heads of state has , since the end of the Second World War , had limits , " William Bourdon declared in an interview with '' Libération '' that the arrêt might create " confusion " , since only three crimes have universally justified lifting presidential immunity : genocide , crimes against humanity and war crimes : " Terrorism is a very subjective crime . If one reasons in this manner , Yasser Arafat could be pursued , " observed Maître Bourdon , underlining that terrorism and narcotics trafficking were deliberately omitted when the International Criminal Court ( ICC ) was created . In keeping with this point , the '' parquet général '' asked the Court of Cassation to pronounce for the first time on the controversial question of the immunity of heads of state . This motion does not require suspending the current investigation
UTA Flight 772
UTA Flight 772
William Bourdon