Thread: UN moves to charge Israel with war crimes

UN moves to charge Israel with war crimes


Global Research, February 11, 2009
Press TV


Ethical and moral questions linger even among Israeli peace activists over the destruction and civilian deaths wrought by the immense Tel Aviv firepower employed in Gaza.The United Nations moves to set up a commission to look into Israeli war crimes and respond to its human rights violations in Gaza.

After the United Nations Works and Relief Agency (UNRWA) compound became the target of GPS-guided Israeli mortars on January 15, the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned "in the strongest terms this outrageous attack" and called for an inquiry into suspected Israeli war crimes. "I strongly demand a thorough investigation and punishment for those responsible," he told reporters in Beirut after the attack. Japanese Ambassador Yukio Takasu, who currently holds the presidency of the Security Council, said late on Monday that Ban had told a closed-door briefing in the council that the UN had set up a commission as a preliminary step to look into Israeli damage to UN premises.

Several diplomats have reported that the commission would be led by the former British secretary-general of human rights group Amnesty International, Ian Martin. Takasu said the commission would later report back to the Security Council, which would then decide how to respond. Diplomats have expressed skepticism as to whether a Security Council inquiry would take place, saying they thought it unlikely that Israel's ally the United States, which has a veto in the council, would allow the 15-nation body to adopt the report as its own.

The January 15 incident, which has prompted the UN inquiry, was the third shelling of UN shelters by Israeli fire in its war on the Palestinian territory. UN spokesman Adnan Abu Hasna said the shelling of the school happened while Israel had been given the coordinates of the building and the compound was also clearly marked with UN flags and logos. "The UN compound in Gaza had only that morning become a makeshift shelter for hundreds of Gaza City residents seeking sanctuary from relentless Israeli shelling," said an unnamed UN official in Gaza.

The UN move to launch a probe into suspected Israeli war crimes comes after the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor in The Hague announced earlier last week that a "preliminary analysis" was launched to review the military conduct of Israeli forces participating in the offensive against the Gaza Strip. The ICC prosecutor's office said it had received 210 communications from individuals and non-governmental organizations regarding the recent events in Gaza. The criminal case is expected to focus on the Israeli atrocities, including charges of using disproportionate force, white phosphorous bombs and depleted uranium in the densely-populated area.

Israel's three-week offensive against Gaza -- aimed at toppling the democratically-elected government of Hamas in the Palestinian territory -- left nearly 1,300 Palestinians dead, more than half of them civilians, according to medical sources. The Israeli assault led to the destruction of schools, mosques, houses, UN compounds and government buildings, which Israel has a responsibility to protect under the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Earlier during the war, members of a Norwegian triage medical team in Gaza which worked at the Shifa Hospital in the war-torn Palestinian territory said Israel had turned Gaza into a research laboratory to test out its new "extremely nasty" weapons on Palestinians. "There's a very strong suspicion I think that Gaza is now being used as a test laboratory for new weapons," Dr. Mads Gilbert told reporters at Oslo's Gardermoen airport upon his return home after the war. "We are not soft-skinned when it comes to war injuries, but these amputations are really extremely nasty and for many of the patients not survivable," Gilbert's colleague Erik Fosse added.

While Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, as well as Israel's most prominent human rights organization, B'Tselem have raised questions about the ethical and moral guidelines of Israel's warfare, the Israeli lobby is working hard to counter efforts to protect the civil rights of Gazans. A Monday report by Press TV revealed that Egypt had refused to allow members of an investigation committee set up by the ICC into the Gaza Strip, arguing that at present only displaced Palestinians could enter the territory through the Rafah crossing. The committee -- comprised of four French and Norwegian lawyers -- intended to collect evidence and testimonials on Operation Cast Lead to present to the International Court.

Amid reports of profound human sufferings, Israel continues to reject the fact that it has imposed a humanitarian crisis among the battle-hardened 1.5 million population of Gaza and denies committing war crimes in the embattled Strip.

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php? ... &aid=12254

I can't help but notice, carolinamtnwoman, that most of your postings with regard to the ongoing crisis in the Middle East have an alarmingly anti-Semitic slant.

As the wife of a wonderful Jewish man, and mother of his five children, I am alarmed and saddened by persistent endeavors to promulgate the hatred and intolerance that is rife within the Anti-Semitic credo.

As a member of this organization, I am deeply offended that this one-sided bias is repeatedly permitted.

In an attempt to counter this prejudicial perspective, I offer the following guest opinion from a local newspaper, which I hope and pray, will shed a more accurate light on this unending conflict.

Please pay particular attention to the passage that begins Act II. Sound familiar?


Repeat performance: Middle East drama painful to watch
By: GADI NSMMAN

Bucks County Courier Times
In the 1993 movie "Groundhog Day," a man discovers that the day repeats itself for seemingly an eternity. Events in Gaza are playing themselves out in painful similarity.
Act I (mid-to-late 1800s). Camera pans barren land as dramatic male voice reads: "Palestine, the promised land, unoccupied for centuries since the Crusaders' Wars." Zoom-in on a few Jews buying useless land from an Arab sheik at an exorbitant price. They work the land as he counts his money greedily laughing at their stupidity. Next few scenes, the "settlers" cultivate the land (which flourishes), dance the Hora around campfires and buy more land from the greedy sheik. Hopeful music.

Act II (late 1800s to 1930s). Arabs throughout the Middle East begin migrating to Palestine. European Jews are tired of pogroms migrate to Palestine too. More land is purchased from greedy Arab sheiks who begin to realize that they didn't charge enough for the land (now that it's flourishing). They incite the Arab population to take by force "what's rightfully theirs." Mob scenes ensue, with the "shabbab" (youth in Arabic) looting and burning Jewish property and killing Jews. The British ignore the Arabs but arrest a few Jews for weapons possession. The League of Nations goes to lunch. Jews conclude that they must defend themselves. Ominous music.

Act III (1930-1950). The "cycle-of-violence" picks up momentum. The sermons at the mosques get more virulent and the mobs get larger. More Jews die, but now as they defend themselves, Arab casualties increase, despite their overt support by the British. Six million Jews die in the Holocaust. Israel is born (194. Arab armies invade, but somehow the Jews prevail (stubborn as they are). The remains of European Jewry and over a million Jews who are expelled from Arab countries find refuge in Israel. Their property is confiscated; the Palestinians don't get a penny. About 650,000 Arabs become the perpetual "Palestinian-Refugees' Problem" in Arab countries. The U.N. condemns Israel and goes to lunch. The sheiks promise that they'll win next time. Revenge music.
Next Act (1950 to present). The "cycle-of-violence" continues. Jews build and absorb their refugees (over five million Jews have reached Israel since 194. Some deny that the Holocaust ever happened; the president of Iran who believes Israel should be eliminated is among them. Arabs continue to destroy and start many wars, all of which they lose but declare victory anyway. Amazingly, the U.N. consistently condemns Israel.
Along the way, Israel wins the 1967 War and experiments with a "land-for-peace" formula. The world gives billions of dollars to the Palestinians who get robbed by their leadership which steals what they don't spend on weapons and sends young Palestinians to kill Israeli civilians and die as "martyrs." Gaza is in ruins, the community of martyrs is growing, and Jews continue to bury their dead, Hamas declares victory, starts rearming immediately and vows to eliminate Israel. The U.N. condemns Israel and goes to lunch with the Palestinians. Revenge music.

Now, as the world rushes to throw more good money after bad to "rebuild Gaza," how will the movie end?
One ending (extremely hopeful, but incredibly naive): under world pressure before any funds are dispersed, all Arabs (including Hamas and Hezbollah) realize that there is no military solution. They recognize Israel's right to exist, lay down their arms, and vow to work with Israel in peace to bring prosperity to their people. Gaza becomes a flourishing Mediterranean Riviera. Palestine buys Sinai from Egypt and start selling Jeep tours to Europeans. Jews and Arabs dance the night away in Gaza discos. Hallelujah music. Movie ends, Hollywood plans a sequel.

Another ending (cynically hopeless, but unbelievably realistic): under world pressure, Israel resumes the "no-peace process" and the Palestinians get better rockets with the world's money. The "cycle-of-violence" proceeds on schedule. Palestinians attack, Israelis counterattack and the death toll mounts. As usual, the U.N. condemns Israel. Finally, the rockets reach Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, Israel wipes out Gaza. Nuclear Iran avenges the Palestinians by dropping the bomb on Israel which then executes its "Massada Plan," unleashing its nuclear-equipped submarines and planes on Iran. No Palestine, no Israel, no Iran, no music. The End.

http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/news_de ... watch.html

And another...

Palestinians should look to Israel as a role model

By: LOIS F. WAITZE
Bucks County Courier Times

Guest Opinion writer Susan Abulhawa wants to know how anyone watching Gaza burn can escape the bitter realization that history repeats itself. She is absolutely correct. History does repeat itself but not as she would have us believe.

The Palestinians have a long history of engaging in terror. Because of their behavior, they were thrown out of Jordan and since entering Lebanon, they have transformed what was once considered a paradise into a disaster zone. The capital of Lebanon, Beirut, was once considered the Paris of the Middle East. Now, because of them, it is in ruins.

The Christian majority that once enjoyed peace and prosperity in Lebanon now live in fear for their lives, not from their Jewish neighbors in Israel, but from the Palestinians living in their midst. In Lebanon it isn't Hamas that causes trouble; there it is Hezbollah. A different Palestinian name for a terrorist group, but wherever the Palestinians go, along with their presence comes the same uncivilized practices ending with the same foreseeable disastrous results for themselves and everyone else.

The maladies she references that affect the children under Palestinian rule are not because of Israel. They are the direct result of the Palestinian penchant to use their children as pawns. And how can she complain of maladies affecting them when they use them as shields, endangering them and their parents by sending them into the market place to die as suicide bombers. They kill their children and then blame Israel for their death. It's tragic!

Ignoring the truth, denying the truth, doesn't change the truth, and the truth is the Palestinians don't want peace. It has been offered to them over and over, and rejected every time. As Abba Eban once noted, they never miss a chance to miss a chance.

Her complaint that Israel has ghettoized Gaza is a myth. Until the 1967 war, Gaza was a part of Egypt. Gaza today has a common border with Egypt. So it has to be asked: Why does Egypt close its borders with Gaza? The answer is the same reason that Israel has closed borders with Gaza. The reason is that the rulers of Gaza, Hamas, are not interested in peace; they only want war and mayhem and destruction and are ever ready to come into any land possible to wage it. The truth is, no one wants them.
The destruction visited on Gaza was the direct result of the unprovoked mortars and rockets emanating from there and raining down on Israel. Israel had an obligation to protect itself from such terror and it did. And even if, as Abulhawa claimed, the rockets were only falling in the open desert (they weren't); they were falling on Israeli soil under the direction of Hamas. The mortar shells and rockets were an act of war and they had to be stopped. To suggest otherwise and to blame the Israelis for protecting themselves is madness.

Abulhawa asks: "What have the Palestinians done to deserve such a fate?" Instead of asking us why the Palestinians behave badly, that is a question she should be asking herself. That is a question she should be asking Hamas and Hezbollah. Blaming, as she does, the fact that they are the non-Jewish natives of the land masks the truth she can't face: Palestinians in Israel live in peace and prosperity, they can openly practice their religion, and they are represented in the Knesset, the Israeli parliament.

Nowhere in the Middle East other than in Israel can a Jew or a Christian live in peace and practice his religion openly. Nowhere else in the Middle East, except in Israel, can newspapers express divergent thoughts openly without fear of death.

Instead of trying to kill Jews, instead of learning war, the Palestinians should look to Israel as a role model for its educational opportunities and its governance and for the freedom of all of its citizens. When they do this, when they change their ways, then they will have joined the civilized world and be welcomed everywhere.

http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/news_de ... model.html

Originally Posted by melena29

I can't help but notice, carolinamtnwoman, that most of your postings with regard to the ongoing crisis in the Middle East have an alarmingly anti-Semitic slant.

Not at all...just posting non-MSM alternative viewpoints which may or may not be of interest to others, yet do not represent any personal bias. As a matter of fact, there are numerous Jewish organizations in the U.S., Europe, and Israel who were opposed to the invasion of Gaza.

My daughter is a high school senior and was required to participate in N.C.'s 'Senior Graduation Project.' She chose the subject of comparative religions for her project and Judaism was one of the five religions she studied by attending services and meetings with the Rabbi at a local synagogue, to which I accompanied her. I, myself, have studied world religions and personally have a great deal of respect and admiration for the Jewish faith. Also, several of my best friends are Jewish as well.

My apologies for any misconceptions.

Originally Posted by carolinamtnwoman

Originally Posted by melena29

I can't help but notice, carolinamtnwoman, that most of your postings with regard to the ongoing crisis in the Middle East have an alarmingly anti-Semitic slant.

Not at all...just posting non-MSM alternative viewpoints which may or may not be of interest to others, yet do not represent any personal bias. As a matter of fact, there are numerous Jewish organizations in the U.S., Europe, and Israel who were opposed to the invasion of Gaza.

My daughter is a high school senior and was required to participate in N.C.'s 'Senior Graduation Project.' She chose the subject of comparative religions for her project and Judaism was one of the five religions she studied by attending services and meetings with the Rabbi at a local synagogue, to which I accompanied her. I, myself, have studied world religions and personally have a great deal of respect and admiration for the Jewish faith. Also, several of my best friends are Jewish as well.

My apologies for any misconceptions.

With all due respect, these articles most certainly are mainstream MSM viewpoints. It is misleading to assert otherwise. If the MSM reported what really is happening in Gaza and Israel, I suspect the world would no longer tolerate Hamas’ atrocities.

I certainly don’t mean to incite, but the allegations the world hurls at Israel reek of anti-Semitic bias, particularly when there is little or no mention of Hamas culpability. Remember, Hamas was lobbing rockets into Israel for several weeks before Israel responded, and when she did so it was only after pleading with Egypt to intervene, and warning the Palestinians that there would soon be a response. They did this in order to allow the Palestinian people to prepare and/or evacuate. A difficult task, by the way, since Hamas firmly plants itself amid the populace in order to glean the collateral damage necessary to procure the support of the rest of the world, an exceptionally evil strategy which has proven to be woefully successful. Shame on the world for keeping its eyes shut so tight.

It takes two to tango, and the Palestinians are always, always the ones who start the dance.

What would the world have Israel do, sit back and let itself be blown apart?

I’d like to know the identity of these Jewish organizations you speak of.

Either way, to hell with the UN!

Originally Posted by melena29

With all due respect, these articles most certainly are mainstream MSM viewpoints. It is misleading to assert otherwise.

The U.S. government and MSM in the U.S. USUALLY supports the Israeli
government.


According to Rabbi Michael Lerner:

'"Often, people who attack Israel, Israeli policy and Zionism are accused of being anti-semites. But often, people are justifiably or reasonably protesting the actions and policies of Israel, without a single iota of anti-semitism."

"If you look at the protests against the Gaza invasion, some are for peace, but some are virulently anti-Israel and some are anti-Semitic."

"This is not about whether the Israelis have a right to defend themselves. They do, in my opinion. This is about the way people who oppose the massive bombing in Gaza discuss and protest."

"Often, people who attack Israel, Israeli policy and Zionism are accused of being anti-semites. Sometimes it is true. I’ve seen enough cases of people hiding their anti-semitism behind anti-Zionism. But often, people are justifiably or reasonably protesting the actions and policies of Israel, without a single iota of anti-semitism."

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Are-An ... 3-740.html



International Jewish Groups Protest Gaza Violence

January 14, 2009
OneWorld US, Jewish Voice for Peace, Advocacy Project, Democracy Now!

WASHINGTON, Jan 14 (OneWorld.net) - Despite pressure from various international Jewish groups, including a call to action in solidarity with the people of Gaza and a silent protest in front of the Israeli consulate in New York, Israeli ground troops continue their siege of Gaza.

ProjectNumerous individuals and groups from the international Jewish community have spoken out about the Israeli attacks on Gaza. In an interview with independent news program Democracy Now!, renowned Jewish playwright Tony Kushner calls the fighting in Gaza "a catastrophically misguided and incomprehensible policy... It's immensely important for the Jewish community to not remain silent." Kushner also calls for a ceasefire, saying it would make "not only the Palestinian people safer, but also Israel safer." Similarly, the advocacy group Jewish Voice for Peace has condemned the ongoing Israeli attacks on Gaza, adding their voice to those of the 1,000 Israelis who protested in the streets of Tel Aviv following the onset of the hostilities in late December. Specifically, Jewish Voice for Peace is calling for an immediate end to attacks on all civilians, whether Palestinian or Israeli.

A wide range of Palestinian groups have also denounced the violence. Among them are a group of Palestinian women's organizations that have sent letters to French President Nicolas Sarkozy and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon "urging them to hold Israel accountable under the tenets of international law and punish them for 'war crimes.'" The groups decried the silence of the international community and said an immediate end to the violence and occupation is necessary as a "first step towards achieving peace in the region." The human rights Advocacy Project reports.


Israel Rejects Gaza Ceasefire Despite Pressure from Jewish Civil Society
From: Advocacy Project

January 12, 2009, Jerusalem: Defying the United Nations Security Council's resolution calling for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, Israeli ground troops are pushing deeper into Gaza, according to the Alternative Information Center (AIC).

The AIC, a joint Israeli-Palestinian organization partner based in Jerusalem and the West Bank, has provided ongoing news coverage of the crisis. The AIC is a partner of The Advocacy Project.

As conditions worsen by the day, the calls for peace continue. Today, the International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network issued a call to action in solidarity with the people of Gaza. A silent protest is also planned in front of the Israeli consulate in New York by Jews who are demanding an immediate end to the violence and saying "Not in Our Name" to the Israeli government.

Supporters of peace in Gaza will also gather at the AICafe in Beit Sahour (in the West Bank) at 6 p.m. Tuesday for their weekly vigil for Gaza. Following the vigil, the AIC is screening the 2004 documentary "Death in Gaza." The film follows the lives of three Palestinian children in the West Bank, Gaza and Rafah.

So far, Israel has failed to heed these calls for peace. Israel's offensive in Gaza has gone on for more than two weeks now, killing more than 800 Palestinians. On Saturday, Israeli planes dropped leaflets over Gaza warning of an escalation in attacks, the AIC reported.

The Israeli military has banned journalists from entering Gaza, making independent confirmation of the situation on the ground difficult. Israel has used this ban to claim that its invasion of the Gaza Strip did not create a humanitarian crisis, but reports from United Nations officials and civilians on the ground prove otherwise.

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) claims there is no safe space in the Gaza Strip - no safe haven, no bomb shelters, closed borders - making this one of the rare conflicts from which civilians cannot flee.

http://us.oneworld.net/article/359487-i ... l-pressure


Thousands of Israelis protest against the war in Gaza

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mc9DN2Oi0-w

Originally Posted by melena29

I’d like to know the identity of these Jewish organizations you speak of.

As you can see above, a number international organizations protested the attack on Gaza. For even more specific information, I suggest you perform a search.