The ruling opened the way for survivors of a 1982 massacre of Palestinian refugees to press their case against the Israeli leader, whom they hold responsible for the deaths of hundreds of their kin in Israeli-occupied Beirut.

The survivors had appealed against a lower court ruling last June that Sharon could not be prosecuted the massacre in the Sabra and Shatila camps in Beirut because he was not in Belgium.

The plaintiffs are using a Belgian human rights law which claims universal jurisdiction allowing the country's courts to try crimes against humanity and genocide, no matter where they were committed.

Sharon was defense minister at the time of the massacre.