Amnesty International (AI) has urged the UN to urgently mandate an independent international investigation into Israeli airstrikes on Gaza as well as Palestine’s indiscriminate shelling of Israel, and hold accountable those responsible for war crimes.
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Despite claims by Israel that its operation “Protective
Edge”, launched June 8, targets Hamas militants,
most of more than a hundred Palestinians killed in airstrikes on
Gaza are civilians, Amnesty says, adding that at least 24 children and 16
women were among the casualties.
Simultaneously, at least 20 people in Israel have been wounded by
rocket attacks from Palestinian territories, according to the
human rights watchdog, calling on the UN to set up a
“fact-finding mission to Gaza and Israel to investigate
violations of international humanitarian law by all parties to
the conflict.”
“Swift UN action is needed as lives hang in the balance,” said Philip Luther, Director of the Middle East and North Africa Program at Amnesty International. “The international community must not repeat previous mistakes, standing by and watching the devastating consequences for civilians of both sides.”
Amnesty sees arms embargo on Israel and all Palestinian military
groups as a means of preventing the violence escalating further.
“Pending such an embargo, all states must immediately suspend
all transfers of military equipment, assistance and munitions to
the parties, which have failed to properly investigate violations
committed in previous conflicts, or bring those responsible to
justice,” Amnesty's official statement reads.
Strikes on homes, performed as part of Israel’s military
operation, are a matter of particular concern to human rights
groups. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay,
on Friday questioned
the legality of such attacks.
Israel has argued that all targets in the Gaza strip are either
military facilities or are homes of Hamas militants.
"In case of doubt, buildings ordinarily used for civilian
purposes, such as homes, are presumed not to be legitimate
military targets,” Libi Vice, spokeswoman for the Israel
Defense Forces (IFD) told RT on Thursday.
Human rights watchdogs want proof that 340 housing units,
destroyed in Gaza, were actually used for military purposes.
“Unless the Israeli authorities can provide specific
information to show how a home is being used to make an effective
contribution to military actions, deliberately attacking civilian
homes constitutes a war crime and also amounts to collective
punishment against the families,” said Amnesty's Luther.
“Firing indiscriminate rockets, which cannot be aimed
accurately at military targets, is a war crime, as is
deliberately targeting civilians,” he added. “There can
be no excuse for either side failing to protect civilians,
including journalists, medics and humanitarian workers, or
civilian facilities.”
Amnesty International has also called on Israel and Egypt to
“ensure that sufficient amounts of medical and humanitarian
supplies are allowed into Gaza”. Healthcare services in the
region have been on the brink of collapse due to shortages of
supplies, the World Health Organization earlier warned.
Friday saw thousands of activists in London and Oslo protesting
against Israeli strikes in Gaza. Organizers of the massive
rallies said Palestinians are facing “a horrific escalation
of racism and violence” at the hands of the IDF.