by Jonathan Dahohah Halevi for Yediot Ahronot
Israel has recently delivered to the United Nations Secretary-general Ban Ki-moon its official response to the UN’s fact finding mission to Operation Cast Lead, headed by Judge Richard Goldstone. Hamas’ government is also preparing to submit its official response before the grace period of six months set to the parties by the Goldstone committee is overIn sharp contrast to the genuine fears expressed by Israel, Hamas does not seem to feel any threat in the legal arena. On the contrary, Hamas demonstrates self-confidence based on the understanding that the Goldstone committee strived only to incriminate Israel and all other limited references to the other side were just for lip service without any legal significance.
Musa Abu Marzouq, Hamas’ second in command, said in this regard in an interview to al-Mashahid al-Siyasi newspaper (December 8, 2009) that “All paragraphs in the Goldstone report convict Israel and totally exonerate Hamas from any misconduct... Likewise, the (Goldstone) report exonerated Hamas from all other accusations mentioned by Israel and even when the (Goldstone) report is dealing with the rockets which were launched from the Gaza Strip it speaks about military groups without naming Hamas.”
Hamas’ line of defense vis-à-vis the Goldstone report has been shaped by a group of Palestinian jurists headed by Diya Al-Din Muhsin Al-Madhoun, former legal adviser to Ismail Haniyeh (Hamas prime minister) and today chairman of the Tawtheeq (documentation) organization that was the key factor assigned by Hamas’ government, on which the Goldstone committee relied for sources of information in its fact finding mission. In series of interviews to the media, Madhoun elaborated as follows Hamas’ main legal arguments of its would-be response to the Goldstone report assumed to be delivered in the near future to the UN secretary general.
The armed struggle is legitimate
Madhoun asserts that all historic Palestine is an occupied land and that the international law legitimizes the right of self defense and resistance of the Palestinian people, who are living under 61 years of occupation. Therefore, Madhoun argues that “resistance operations conducted by the Palestinian resistance organizations, including launching rockets and mortar shells at the occupying Zionist forces, and all other military operations, are legitimate according the international law under the principle of defending our people and liberating our occupied land.”
Israel has no right to self defense
Madhoun entirely rebuts Israel’s claim for self defence, arguing that it constitutes a grave violation of the Palestinian people’s right for self defence as reflected in its armed struggle to liberate the land of Palestine. And in his words (translated from Arabic): “the war against Gaza was illegitimate... as the international law rules that there isn’t legitimate defence (of the occupier) against the legitimate defence (of the occupied) embodied in the defence through struggle.”
Hamas didn’t want to kill Israeli civilians
According to Madhoun, Hamas and the other “Palestinian resistance organizations” were systematically prudent in implementing the international law and avoided intentionally targeting Israeli civilians. Referring to the many hundreds of rockets which struck Israeli communities during the war, Madhoun explained that the Palestinian organizations launched the rockets only at “military targets,” such as tanks positions, military airports and concentrations of Israeli military forces on their way to invade the Gaza Strip. He finds evidence in the low number of Israeli fatalities totaling only three people who were killed by the “inaccurate rockets when they missed their original targets.” Furthermore, Madhoun stressed that Hamas spared the lives of Israeli civilians, claiming that if they were targeted dozens of them may have been killed.
Rockets were launched only at occupied territories
Madhoun argues that Israel’s claim that Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist organizations launched rockets at its sovereign territory is groundless. Relying on UN resolution 181 (known as the Partition Plan for Palestine), but without accepting it, Madhoun said that all rockets targeted only areas which were designated to the “Arab state” by the UN resolution, and as Israel has no internationally recognized borders with the Palestinian territories, their areas are still under conflict. Consequently, he concludes that Israel violated the rights of the Israeli civilians for security in settling them illegally in this military disputed area and thus risking their life.
No legitimate targets in Gaza
Madhoun unconditionally negates justification for any Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip. In addition to the aforementioned arguments denying Israel’s right for self defence, Madhoun noted that t international law prohibits attacks on any target when there is a doubt whether it is combatant or civilian. “My stand is that all targets bombed in the Gaza Strip are under the category of doubt”, he said.
Goldstone’s accusations against Hamas are meaningless
Madhoun regards the Goldstone report as a one sided document against Israel, saying that more than 500 pages were dedicated to describing a myriad of widely documented accusations against Israel, while for the Palestinian side only 10 pages were allocated and even they didn’t include any evidence or documentation. Confidently, he asserts: “I can say as a jurist that all allegations mentioned in the (Goldstone) report do not mount to significant accusations of violating the humanitarian international law and the (Hamas) independent investigative committees will prove it.”
War criminals only in Israel
Madhoun boasted of Hamas’ cooperation with international jurists, human rights organizations, the Goldstone committee and UN delegates, which helped in establishing the argument that Israel committed war crimes. The next stage in Hamas’ strategy, according to Madhoun, is prosecuting Israeli “war criminals” worldwide and submitting lawsuits to the International Criminal Court against Israel.
Tawtheeq organization, headed by Madhoun, is backed by the Law Committee of the Palestinian parliament and its Hamas members include Dr. Yunis al-Astal who advocates the extinction of all the Jewish people, Dr. Ahmad Abu Halabia, who urged suicide attacks in Jerusalem, and Jamila al-Shanti, who identifies with terrorist attacks against Israel.
The reality is illusive and strikes time and time again in our faces. A declared terrorist organization, which adheres to the Islamic law (sharia) as the only source of legitimacy and promotes ideology of genocide, receives legal support from human rights organizations and internationally respected jurists in its lawfare waged against a democratic state.
Even more peculiar is Judge Richard Goldstone’s decision to rely without reservations on Tawtheeq and its experts in preparing its report, while they publicly make a travesty of the international law and argue that Israel violated the Palestinians’ rights to kill Israelis in the armed struggle for the liberation of the land of Palestine and to destroy Israel.
Lt. Col. (res.) Jonathan Dahoah-Halevi is a senior researcher of the Middle East and radical Islam at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. He is a co-founder of the Orient Research Group Ltd. and is a former advisor to the Policy Planning Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Showing posts with label Ban Ki-Moon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ban Ki-Moon. Show all posts
Monday, February 8, 2010
Sunday, October 18, 2009
The Philadelphia Bulletin: Report Charges Israel with War Crimes
by David Bedein
Jerusalem - The Goldstone report, which accuses Israel of war crimes in the course of Operation Cast Lead, was raised Thursday for discussion at the UN Human Rights Council, at the request of the Palestinian Authority.
Ahead of the discussion and the subsequent vote that will decide if the report will be adopted by the UN, Israel is getting into high gear.
Despite the low chances of obtaining a majority in Israel’s favor in the vote, politicians and diplomats are trying to influence a few countries in order to recruit them to Israel’s side.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said last week that the Israeli battle against the report is very difficult because of the majority against Israel in the UN and in a number of UN committees.
He says that this battle will preoccupy Israel in the coming years.
High-ranking government sources said that as of now, the chances of the Goldstone report not being adopted are very low and it appears that the Palestinians will succeed in obtaining a majority.
At the moment, Israel is focusing its public relations activity in the countries belonging to the European Union, the African states, Asia and South America.
As part of the Israeli PR campaign, the work was divided between four people: President Shimon Peres, Prime Minister Netanyahu, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman. Each of them received a list with a number of heads of state with whom they will talk and ask them not to support the report.
Israel will warn that adopting the Goldstone report means ending the peace process, because Israel will not agree to wage a legal-diplomatic battle along with conducting a peace process.
“The Goldstone report will be part of the international discourse for a long time yet and will be a heavy burden on Israel in the international arena,” said a high-ranking Israeli source.
“We can cope with its ramifications but the problem is that it turns Israel into the defendant and makes the state into a leper. It’s not good for Israel when it is spoken about as if it is a country that commits war crimes.”
What particularly irks Israel is that Palestinian Authority Chairman Abu Mazen and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon are now aligned. The UN secretary general expressed his support for discussing the report at the U.N. Human Rights Council.
View the original article in the Philadelphia Bulletin
Jerusalem - The Goldstone report, which accuses Israel of war crimes in the course of Operation Cast Lead, was raised Thursday for discussion at the UN Human Rights Council, at the request of the Palestinian Authority.
Ahead of the discussion and the subsequent vote that will decide if the report will be adopted by the UN, Israel is getting into high gear.
Despite the low chances of obtaining a majority in Israel’s favor in the vote, politicians and diplomats are trying to influence a few countries in order to recruit them to Israel’s side.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said last week that the Israeli battle against the report is very difficult because of the majority against Israel in the UN and in a number of UN committees.
He says that this battle will preoccupy Israel in the coming years.
High-ranking government sources said that as of now, the chances of the Goldstone report not being adopted are very low and it appears that the Palestinians will succeed in obtaining a majority.
At the moment, Israel is focusing its public relations activity in the countries belonging to the European Union, the African states, Asia and South America.
As part of the Israeli PR campaign, the work was divided between four people: President Shimon Peres, Prime Minister Netanyahu, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman. Each of them received a list with a number of heads of state with whom they will talk and ask them not to support the report.
Israel will warn that adopting the Goldstone report means ending the peace process, because Israel will not agree to wage a legal-diplomatic battle along with conducting a peace process.
“The Goldstone report will be part of the international discourse for a long time yet and will be a heavy burden on Israel in the international arena,” said a high-ranking Israeli source.
“We can cope with its ramifications but the problem is that it turns Israel into the defendant and makes the state into a leper. It’s not good for Israel when it is spoken about as if it is a country that commits war crimes.”
What particularly irks Israel is that Palestinian Authority Chairman Abu Mazen and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon are now aligned. The UN secretary general expressed his support for discussing the report at the U.N. Human Rights Council.
View the original article in the Philadelphia Bulletin
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
The Philadelphia Bulletin: Netanyahu Denounces the UN
by David Bedein
Jerusalem - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the following remarks on Thursday to the media:
“In the next 24 hours, a vote will take place in Geneva in the framework of the council known as the United Nations Human Rights Council. I remind you that in recent years, this council has made more decisions against Israel than against all other 180 countries in the world.”
The Israeli Prime Minister threatened that “if it should decide to forward what is known as the Goldstone report, it will strike a severe blow to three things:
“First of all, it will strike a severe blow to the war against terrorism since it will afford total legitimization to terrorists who fire upon civilians and who hide behind civilians. To those who - from international platforms, and using international law - attack and condemn the victim who legitimately defends himself, this is a mortal blow to the war on terrorism.
“Secondly, it will strike a mortal blow to the stature of the United Nations. It will return it to its darkest days, in which it could make the most absurd decisions, which would empty it of all substance and significance.
“Thirdly, and perhaps the most immediate and obvious of all, forwarding the decision of what is known as the Goldstone report, would strike a fatal blow to the peace process because Israel will no longer be able to take additional steps and take risks for peace if its right to self-defense is denied.”
The Israeli Prime Minister concluded his remarks by saying that “the decision on whether to forward this report which will impair both the struggle against terrorism and stature of the United Nations, and strike a mortal blow to the peace process.”
View the original article in the Philadelphia Bulletin
Jerusalem - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the following remarks on Thursday to the media:
“In the next 24 hours, a vote will take place in Geneva in the framework of the council known as the United Nations Human Rights Council. I remind you that in recent years, this council has made more decisions against Israel than against all other 180 countries in the world.”
The Israeli Prime Minister threatened that “if it should decide to forward what is known as the Goldstone report, it will strike a severe blow to three things:
“First of all, it will strike a severe blow to the war against terrorism since it will afford total legitimization to terrorists who fire upon civilians and who hide behind civilians. To those who - from international platforms, and using international law - attack and condemn the victim who legitimately defends himself, this is a mortal blow to the war on terrorism.
“Secondly, it will strike a mortal blow to the stature of the United Nations. It will return it to its darkest days, in which it could make the most absurd decisions, which would empty it of all substance and significance.
“Thirdly, and perhaps the most immediate and obvious of all, forwarding the decision of what is known as the Goldstone report, would strike a fatal blow to the peace process because Israel will no longer be able to take additional steps and take risks for peace if its right to self-defense is denied.”
The Israeli Prime Minister concluded his remarks by saying that “the decision on whether to forward this report which will impair both the struggle against terrorism and stature of the United Nations, and strike a mortal blow to the peace process.”
View the original article in the Philadelphia Bulletin
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
The Philadelphia Bulletin: Peres To UN Chief: You Should Have Visited Auschwitz, Not Ahmadinejad
by David Bedein
Israeli President Shimon Peres harshly criticized U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon during their Wednesday meeting in New York.
The meeting took place against the backdrop of Mr. Ban’s personal behavior during last month’s Durban II conference and the U.N.’s recent report criticizing Israeli conduct in Gaza four months ago.
Addressing the Durban II conference, Mr. Peres told Mr. Ban he should have taken his entourage to visit Auschwitz instead of sitting by idly as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad delivered a speech devoted to the denial of the Holocaust.
Unlike the European representatives, the U.N. secretary-general listened attentively to the entire speech and did not leave the hall.
“I am ashamed,” Mr. Peres said.
Mr. Ban, in response, tried to tone down Mr. Peres’ harsh statements and said, in his defense, Mr. Ahmadinejad had misled him.
The secretary-general said he had sat with Mr. Ahmadinejad and drafted a moderate statement with him for an hour prior to his speech at the Geneva, Switzerland-based conference.
However, Mr. Ahmadinejad went up to the stage and ignored their agreement, delivering a speech denying the Holocaust instead.
Mr. Ban said his position as secretary-general prevented him from leaving the hall, but Mr. Peres rejected his explanation.
Mr. Peres said he felt a great shame that the U.N. had chosen Holocaust Memorial Day, the worst day in the Jewish consciousness, to give a platform to such a despicable man.
After their discussion about the Durban II conference, the meeting continued to be tense because of the U.N. report on the Israeli operation in Gaza, among other reasons.
Mr. Ban said he had attempted to tone down the report and had softened many problematic parts and extracted clauses that deviated from the report’s original purpose.
The Israeli president gave Mr. Ban a sharp rhetorical question, inquiring if the U.N. expected Israel to sit idly by, since more than 4,000 rockets were fired on Israel in the past three years.
He lambasted the report’s ignorance of Hamas’ activities, such as planting bombs in kindergartens, buildings and even U.N. facilities.
The secretary-general responded by saying the U.N. would not begin another inquiry into Operation Cast Lead, as the Gaza incursion is referred to by Israel, without the Jewish state’s consent.
Mr. Peres admitted Israel made some mistakes in the course if the operation and said Israel did not intend to deliberately kill civilians; however, he also said the Arabs who fire from Gaza do.
See this story in the Philadelphia Bulletin
See this story at Israel Behind the News
Israeli President Shimon Peres harshly criticized U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon during their Wednesday meeting in New York.
The meeting took place against the backdrop of Mr. Ban’s personal behavior during last month’s Durban II conference and the U.N.’s recent report criticizing Israeli conduct in Gaza four months ago.
Addressing the Durban II conference, Mr. Peres told Mr. Ban he should have taken his entourage to visit Auschwitz instead of sitting by idly as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad delivered a speech devoted to the denial of the Holocaust.
Unlike the European representatives, the U.N. secretary-general listened attentively to the entire speech and did not leave the hall.
“I am ashamed,” Mr. Peres said.
Mr. Ban, in response, tried to tone down Mr. Peres’ harsh statements and said, in his defense, Mr. Ahmadinejad had misled him.
The secretary-general said he had sat with Mr. Ahmadinejad and drafted a moderate statement with him for an hour prior to his speech at the Geneva, Switzerland-based conference.
However, Mr. Ahmadinejad went up to the stage and ignored their agreement, delivering a speech denying the Holocaust instead.
Mr. Ban said his position as secretary-general prevented him from leaving the hall, but Mr. Peres rejected his explanation.
Mr. Peres said he felt a great shame that the U.N. had chosen Holocaust Memorial Day, the worst day in the Jewish consciousness, to give a platform to such a despicable man.
After their discussion about the Durban II conference, the meeting continued to be tense because of the U.N. report on the Israeli operation in Gaza, among other reasons.
Mr. Ban said he had attempted to tone down the report and had softened many problematic parts and extracted clauses that deviated from the report’s original purpose.
The Israeli president gave Mr. Ban a sharp rhetorical question, inquiring if the U.N. expected Israel to sit idly by, since more than 4,000 rockets were fired on Israel in the past three years.
He lambasted the report’s ignorance of Hamas’ activities, such as planting bombs in kindergartens, buildings and even U.N. facilities.
The secretary-general responded by saying the U.N. would not begin another inquiry into Operation Cast Lead, as the Gaza incursion is referred to by Israel, without the Jewish state’s consent.
Mr. Peres admitted Israel made some mistakes in the course if the operation and said Israel did not intend to deliberately kill civilians; however, he also said the Arabs who fire from Gaza do.
See this story in the Philadelphia Bulletin
See this story at Israel Behind the News
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
The Philadelphia Bulletin: Israeli Official - Gaza Report 'Biased, Unfair'
by David Bedein
Assessment Of Shootings On UN Sites During Gaza War Draws Ire
An official U.N. report that studied the Israeli shootings at U.N. institutions during Israel’s December/January incursion into Gaza accuses Israel of grave offenses, including disproportionate shooting and deliberately hitting U.N. civilians and institutions.
The special report, written by former Amnesty International head Ian Martin, studied the circumstances surrounding the Israeli fire that was directed at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) institutions in Gaza in the course of the incursion, referred to by Israel as Operation Cast Lead.
Jerusalem is putting heavy pressure on U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to delay the publication of the report, or at least reduce the grave charges.
The committee members, headed by Mr. Martin, visited the Gaza Strip in February and met with top Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Israel Foreign Ministry representatives. The Israelis then showed the members of the U.N. committee detailed findings related to the shooting incidents at UNRWA facilities in the course of the operation.
Israel’s representatives presented aerial photographs, unmanned aerial vehicle photographs and other intelligence material that showed Hamas activities near the UNRWA facilities, which exploited the latter’s immunity.
The IDF carried out a special inquiry in response to the U.N.’s allegations. At the end of the inquiry, Israeli military figures said many measures had been taken to avoid hitting U.N. installations and vehicles, or those belonging to the Red Cross and other international organizations.
Relating to the incident of the shooting at the UNRWA school in Jabalya, the army contended that Hamas fighters fired mortar shells at IDF troops from a point approximately 260 feet from the school.
After identifying the source of the mortar fire with certainty, the information was verified and cross-referenced, and the IDF force that came under fire carried out what it considered was a proportional and minimal counterattack.
The IDF responded to the U.N. comments regarding the strikes against its vehicles, stating: “[1]n one case it was found that a U.N. vehicle was hit as a result of shots fired contrary to orders, and the soldier who opened fire will be court-martialed on disciplinary charges.”
The report reached the U.N. secretary-general’s desk a few days ago, and it is liable to generate a diplomatic earthquake. The report’s authors chose to ignore Israel’s contentions and unequivocally determined that Israel deliberately fired at U.N. institutions even though it knew it was forbidden.
The report accuses Israel of disproportionate fire and excessive use of force. The report also states Israel unnecessarily and excessively shot at Palestinian civilians.
The report is worded in a one-sided manner and includes numerous and grave charges against Israel, while almost entirely ignoring Hamas’ actions during the conflict and the ongoing rocket attacks against Israeli communities.
Some who have seen the report say its authors completely ignored the information Israel passed on to the U.N. after the Gaza incursion.
The report’s main recommendation is liable to get Israel into hot water in the diplomatic sphere and create enormous damage: the appointment of an independent U.N. investigative committee that will thoroughly investigate the operations and other steps taken during the Gaza incursion, which would check whether Israel abided by international laws and charters during the operation.
The independent investigative committee would be sent by the U.N. secretary-general and would take testimony from Palestinians and from UNRWA workers to further investigate whether Israel committed war crimes or deviated from international law.
Such a committee likely would generate a wave of international condemnation against Israel and would open up the possibility of charging top Israeli officials in legal institutions all over the world and drag Israel into deep diplomatic mud.
When the intention to make the report public became known, the new Israel Foreign Ministry director-general, Yossi Gal, left for New York to receive the draft of the report and to hold talks with top U.N. officials.
He hopes to persuade them to delay publication, change some of the sharp language and to obtain a promise the secretary-general will seek to balance the report’s harsh findings in the press conference that will take place after the report comes out.
Israeli officials are very troubled by the timing of the publication - on the eve of this morning’s meeting between President Shimon Peres and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
An Israeli government official said: “The secretary-general’s report is biased, unfair, suffers from blindness and ignores the circumstances that were in place in the course of Operation Cast Lead when Hamas made use of the population as a human shield and fired from inside houses and from inside and close to U.N. installations.”
A member of the French U.N. delegation said if the report’s conclusion are accepted, it could drag Israel into a relentless diplomatic war that was worse than what it underwent during the Second Intifada.
In addition, the report’s conclusion is liable to spark a wave of international repercussions toward Israel and turn it into a main target of human rights organizations.
The chances are increasing that the report will be released next week, which will give Israel a new challenge. It will require it to launch a comprehensive campaign to prevent the conclusion of the U.N. Security Council’s report from being accepted as is.
In addition, it is not out of the question that Israel will be condemned in the U.N. Security Council, since the U.S. will find it hard to veto an official conclusion of a report of the U.N. secretary-general.
See this story in the Philadelphia Bulletin
See this story at Israel Behind the News
Assessment Of Shootings On UN Sites During Gaza War Draws Ire
An official U.N. report that studied the Israeli shootings at U.N. institutions during Israel’s December/January incursion into Gaza accuses Israel of grave offenses, including disproportionate shooting and deliberately hitting U.N. civilians and institutions.
The special report, written by former Amnesty International head Ian Martin, studied the circumstances surrounding the Israeli fire that was directed at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) institutions in Gaza in the course of the incursion, referred to by Israel as Operation Cast Lead.
Jerusalem is putting heavy pressure on U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to delay the publication of the report, or at least reduce the grave charges.
The committee members, headed by Mr. Martin, visited the Gaza Strip in February and met with top Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Israel Foreign Ministry representatives. The Israelis then showed the members of the U.N. committee detailed findings related to the shooting incidents at UNRWA facilities in the course of the operation.
Israel’s representatives presented aerial photographs, unmanned aerial vehicle photographs and other intelligence material that showed Hamas activities near the UNRWA facilities, which exploited the latter’s immunity.
The IDF carried out a special inquiry in response to the U.N.’s allegations. At the end of the inquiry, Israeli military figures said many measures had been taken to avoid hitting U.N. installations and vehicles, or those belonging to the Red Cross and other international organizations.
Relating to the incident of the shooting at the UNRWA school in Jabalya, the army contended that Hamas fighters fired mortar shells at IDF troops from a point approximately 260 feet from the school.
After identifying the source of the mortar fire with certainty, the information was verified and cross-referenced, and the IDF force that came under fire carried out what it considered was a proportional and minimal counterattack.
The IDF responded to the U.N. comments regarding the strikes against its vehicles, stating: “[1]n one case it was found that a U.N. vehicle was hit as a result of shots fired contrary to orders, and the soldier who opened fire will be court-martialed on disciplinary charges.”
The report reached the U.N. secretary-general’s desk a few days ago, and it is liable to generate a diplomatic earthquake. The report’s authors chose to ignore Israel’s contentions and unequivocally determined that Israel deliberately fired at U.N. institutions even though it knew it was forbidden.
The report accuses Israel of disproportionate fire and excessive use of force. The report also states Israel unnecessarily and excessively shot at Palestinian civilians.
The report is worded in a one-sided manner and includes numerous and grave charges against Israel, while almost entirely ignoring Hamas’ actions during the conflict and the ongoing rocket attacks against Israeli communities.
Some who have seen the report say its authors completely ignored the information Israel passed on to the U.N. after the Gaza incursion.
The report’s main recommendation is liable to get Israel into hot water in the diplomatic sphere and create enormous damage: the appointment of an independent U.N. investigative committee that will thoroughly investigate the operations and other steps taken during the Gaza incursion, which would check whether Israel abided by international laws and charters during the operation.
The independent investigative committee would be sent by the U.N. secretary-general and would take testimony from Palestinians and from UNRWA workers to further investigate whether Israel committed war crimes or deviated from international law.
Such a committee likely would generate a wave of international condemnation against Israel and would open up the possibility of charging top Israeli officials in legal institutions all over the world and drag Israel into deep diplomatic mud.
When the intention to make the report public became known, the new Israel Foreign Ministry director-general, Yossi Gal, left for New York to receive the draft of the report and to hold talks with top U.N. officials.
He hopes to persuade them to delay publication, change some of the sharp language and to obtain a promise the secretary-general will seek to balance the report’s harsh findings in the press conference that will take place after the report comes out.
Israeli officials are very troubled by the timing of the publication - on the eve of this morning’s meeting between President Shimon Peres and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
An Israeli government official said: “The secretary-general’s report is biased, unfair, suffers from blindness and ignores the circumstances that were in place in the course of Operation Cast Lead when Hamas made use of the population as a human shield and fired from inside houses and from inside and close to U.N. installations.”
A member of the French U.N. delegation said if the report’s conclusion are accepted, it could drag Israel into a relentless diplomatic war that was worse than what it underwent during the Second Intifada.
In addition, the report’s conclusion is liable to spark a wave of international repercussions toward Israel and turn it into a main target of human rights organizations.
The chances are increasing that the report will be released next week, which will give Israel a new challenge. It will require it to launch a comprehensive campaign to prevent the conclusion of the U.N. Security Council’s report from being accepted as is.
In addition, it is not out of the question that Israel will be condemned in the U.N. Security Council, since the U.S. will find it hard to veto an official conclusion of a report of the U.N. secretary-general.
See this story in the Philadelphia Bulletin
See this story at Israel Behind the News
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