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World Jewish News
UN team probing Gaza war to visit Strip
08.05.2009
Two days after Israel blasted a UN report that claims the IDF failed to take adequate precautions to ensure that UN installations and civilians would not be harmed during Operation Cast Lead, a team set up to probe alleged war crimes announced its plans to visit Israel and the Gaza Strip soon.
The fact-finding mission appointed by the UN Human Rights Council to investigate rights violations during the Gaza war also renewed a call for Israel to support their investigation.
Richard Goldstone, who heads the four-member mission, stressed his team will adopt a law-based approach in preparing its report to UN Human Rights Council in July, and will investigate alleged rights violation by both Israel and Hamas.
"I would like to emphasize that we will focus our investigation not on political considerations, but on an objective and impartial analysis of compliance of the parties to the conflict with their obligations under international human rights and humanitarian law, especially their responsibility to ensure the protection of civilians and non-combatants," said Goldstone, a former UN war crimes prosecutor.
"I believe that an objective assessment of the issues is in the interests of all parties, will promote a culture of accountability and could serve to promote greater peace and security in the region," the South African judge said.
The mission intends to conduct visits to Southern Israel, to the West Bank and to Gaza, and has requested the cooperation of the Israeli government in this regard.
The other members of the team include Christine Chinkin, Professor of International Law at the London School of Economics and Political Science at the University of London; Hina Jilani, Advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and former Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Human Rights Defenders; and Colonel (retired from the Irish Armed Forces) Desmond Travers, member of the Board of Directors of the Institute for International Criminal Investigations (IICI).
On Wednesday, President Shimon Peres told reporters that IDF forces did not intentionally aim at civilians or United Nations facilities during Operation Cast Lead, but acknowledged that Israel may have made "some mistakes."
Speaking after a private meeting with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Peres repeated the government's position that it would not accept "one word" of a report about attacks on UN facilities during the war that was released Tuesday.
The report, commissioned by Ban in February, blamed Israel for failing to take adequate precautions to ensure that UN installations and civilians sheltering in them would be protected from shells or other fire intended for Hamas terrorists.
According to the UN report, the IDF was responsible for fatalities and damage in six cases, including a strike that killed people sheltering at a Gaza school.
Источник: JPost.com
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