20 sept 2014
French President Francois Hollande declared on Friday during a joint press conference with PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas in Paris that France would present a resolution to the United Nations Security Council calling for a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “We will have a resolution, to be presented to the Security Council, that will say very clearly what we expect from the (peace) process and what the solution to the conflict must be,” according to Hollande's statement.
"There is a perception that there will never be a solution to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, even though we know the outlines” of a possible agreement, he said.
This is the third time that Gaza has been destroyed, Hollande underlined. "What we must look for is a durable peace accord," he said, adding that stalled peace talks "must now reach their end".
For his part, Abbas called on "all states to assume their responsibilities to put an end to the conflict ongoing for more than 66 years," stressing that "peace-making would give greater legitimacy to combat terrorism in the region."
Abbas, who is seeking to rally support before the announcement of a new Palestinian diplomatic initiative in the United Nations, said that "France can press for an international mobilization for the implementation of the Arab initiative."
Abbas has recently won Arab League support for his plan calling for an end to Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories within three years and the formation of a Palestinian state based on 1967 borders.
Abbas is to scheduled travel from Paris to New York within two days to participate in the annual UN General Assembly session starting September 24. He is slated to deliver a speech at the meeting.
"There is a perception that there will never be a solution to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, even though we know the outlines” of a possible agreement, he said.
This is the third time that Gaza has been destroyed, Hollande underlined. "What we must look for is a durable peace accord," he said, adding that stalled peace talks "must now reach their end".
For his part, Abbas called on "all states to assume their responsibilities to put an end to the conflict ongoing for more than 66 years," stressing that "peace-making would give greater legitimacy to combat terrorism in the region."
Abbas, who is seeking to rally support before the announcement of a new Palestinian diplomatic initiative in the United Nations, said that "France can press for an international mobilization for the implementation of the Arab initiative."
Abbas has recently won Arab League support for his plan calling for an end to Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories within three years and the formation of a Palestinian state based on 1967 borders.
Abbas is to scheduled travel from Paris to New York within two days to participate in the annual UN General Assembly session starting September 24. He is slated to deliver a speech at the meeting.
19 sept 2014
Head of the popular committee against the siege MP Jamal Al-Khudari strongly condemned the Israeli decision to prevent the new UN special reporter on the Palestinian occupied territories Makarim Wibisono from entering the Gaza Strip. MP Khudari said that such decision reflected Israel's disregard for the international law and its attempts to conceal the crimes its army had committed in the Gaza Strip.
"Such practices will never succeed in his inf the truth and the criminal image of the Israeli occupation state," he added.
He also stressed the need to accelerate procedures to lift the inhumane siege on Gaza and pressure Israel in this regard.
"Such practices will never succeed in his inf the truth and the criminal image of the Israeli occupation state," he added.
He also stressed the need to accelerate procedures to lift the inhumane siege on Gaza and pressure Israel in this regard.
17 sept 2014
The Israeli Foreign Ministry has expressed a refusal to cooperate with the fact-finding mission with regard to the recent Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip coordinated by the Human Rights Council of the United Nations, say Israeli reports.
According to Al Ray Palestinian Media Agency, the Ministry recently made recommendations not to cooperate with the UN mission.
Israeli daily Yediot Ahronot reported that the Israeli Foreign Ministry wonders if it should cooperate with a fact finding mission which relies on an "anti-Israeli majority".
The sources said that "Israel did not cooperate with Goldstone. As a result, his report was disappeared.”
The Goldstone Commission report on the Israeli military aggression on Gaza from 2008-2009 accused Israel of committing war crimes in the Gaza Strip, in which nearly 1,400 Palestinians were killed, most of whom were civilians.
For more information on this, see: 07/13/14 Jews Against Genocide Hold Memorial for Palestinian Children at Yad Vashem
Over 2,000 Palestinians have been killed and more than 10,000 others injured, during the most recent assault, in over a month of devastating Israeli attacks on the besieged Gaza Strip, beginning in the first week of July.
According to Al Ray Palestinian Media Agency, the Ministry recently made recommendations not to cooperate with the UN mission.
Israeli daily Yediot Ahronot reported that the Israeli Foreign Ministry wonders if it should cooperate with a fact finding mission which relies on an "anti-Israeli majority".
The sources said that "Israel did not cooperate with Goldstone. As a result, his report was disappeared.”
The Goldstone Commission report on the Israeli military aggression on Gaza from 2008-2009 accused Israel of committing war crimes in the Gaza Strip, in which nearly 1,400 Palestinians were killed, most of whom were civilians.
For more information on this, see: 07/13/14 Jews Against Genocide Hold Memorial for Palestinian Children at Yad Vashem
Over 2,000 Palestinians have been killed and more than 10,000 others injured, during the most recent assault, in over a month of devastating Israeli attacks on the besieged Gaza Strip, beginning in the first week of July.
16 sept 2014
The Palestinian ministry of education said that 538 educational institutions sustained total damage of more than 33 million dollars during the last Israeli war on the Gaza Strip. This came in a detailed report released by the general directorate of buildings and projects at the ministry.
The report provides information on the financial losses that were inflicted on the educational sector during 51 days of military aggression against Gaza.
According to this report, the affected education institutions include, public and UNRWA schools, kindergartens, and public and private higher education facilities.
The report provides information on the financial losses that were inflicted on the educational sector during 51 days of military aggression against Gaza.
According to this report, the affected education institutions include, public and UNRWA schools, kindergartens, and public and private higher education facilities.
13 sept 2014
According to the second-deputy speaker of the Palestinian parliament, Hasan Khreisha, Fateh party member and defacto president of the country, Mahmoud Abbas, has blocked an attempt to push for the prosecution of Israel for war crimes in Gaza at the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Mr. Khreisha told Ma'an that the Palestinian Authority's decision to join the ICC and thus press charges against Israel for the recent 50-day assault on Gaza which killed over 2,100 residents, most of whom were civilians, was halted by Abbas in order to push forward a new peace talks bid.
See: Washington Threatens Sanctions Should PA Approach UN with Proposal to Dismantle Israeli Occupation for extensive background information on this matter.
"President Abbas decided not to sue Israel at the ICC unless his new initiative fails to resume peace talks with Israel," Khreisha said, according to Ma'an News Agency, adding that the PA was waiting for United States officials to reply to a message from Abbas which requested the resumption of talks.
Israel and the United States have both tried to prevent the Palestinians from joining the ICC, fearing that Israel would be investigated and prosecuted for war crimes.
See also: Human Rights Watch: Israel Likely to Have Committed War Crimes in Gaza
Khreisha told Ma'an that, even though all major Palestinian parties had given president Abbas a document in which they voiced their support for Palestinian accession to the ICC, "so far, no practical steps have been taken in that direction."
Over the past week, Abbas has accused Hamas of running a "shadow government" and, thus, undermining the national unity government.
Hamas has roundly denied the allegation, according to Ma'an.
Mr. Khreisha told Ma'an that the Palestinian Authority's decision to join the ICC and thus press charges against Israel for the recent 50-day assault on Gaza which killed over 2,100 residents, most of whom were civilians, was halted by Abbas in order to push forward a new peace talks bid.
See: Washington Threatens Sanctions Should PA Approach UN with Proposal to Dismantle Israeli Occupation for extensive background information on this matter.
"President Abbas decided not to sue Israel at the ICC unless his new initiative fails to resume peace talks with Israel," Khreisha said, according to Ma'an News Agency, adding that the PA was waiting for United States officials to reply to a message from Abbas which requested the resumption of talks.
Israel and the United States have both tried to prevent the Palestinians from joining the ICC, fearing that Israel would be investigated and prosecuted for war crimes.
See also: Human Rights Watch: Israel Likely to Have Committed War Crimes in Gaza
Khreisha told Ma'an that, even though all major Palestinian parties had given president Abbas a document in which they voiced their support for Palestinian accession to the ICC, "so far, no practical steps have been taken in that direction."
Over the past week, Abbas has accused Hamas of running a "shadow government" and, thus, undermining the national unity government.
Hamas has roundly denied the allegation, according to Ma'an.
Colonel Ofer Winter
In a rare admittance of the use of the so-called 'Hannibal Directive', in which Israeli soldiers kill their fellow soldiers to avoid their capture, an Israeli military officer admitted in an interview with the Israeli daily Yedioth Ahranoth that he ordered a mass bombardment of parts of Rafah during the Israeli invasion, last month, in order to ensure the death of an Israeli soldier who he believed had been captured.
The Rafah bombardment lasted for three straight days, from August 1st to 4th, and resulted in at least 114 deaths of civilians, in a bid to kill an Israeli soldier that Winter believed had been captured.
It turned out later that the soldiers had never been captured, but had been killed in an engagement with Hamas fighters, on August 1st.
In a rare admittance of the use of the so-called 'Hannibal Directive', in which Israeli soldiers kill their fellow soldiers to avoid their capture, an Israeli military officer admitted in an interview with the Israeli daily Yedioth Ahranoth that he ordered a mass bombardment of parts of Rafah during the Israeli invasion, last month, in order to ensure the death of an Israeli soldier who he believed had been captured.
The Rafah bombardment lasted for three straight days, from August 1st to 4th, and resulted in at least 114 deaths of civilians, in a bid to kill an Israeli soldier that Winter believed had been captured.
It turned out later that the soldiers had never been captured, but had been killed in an engagement with Hamas fighters, on August 1st.
Zo'rob children
The civilians killed in that bombardment included a number of families who were crushed to death when their homes were hit by airstrikes – like the Zo'rob family, who lost five children, including 7-year-old twins Amir and Odai, their 8-year-old brother Khaled, 10-year-old Shahd and 12-year-old Rawan.
In his interview with Yedioth Ahranoth, Colonel Ofer Winter called the civilian population in Gaza “a partner of terror” that “gets what they choose”.
Journalist Rania Khalek with the Electronic Intifada wrote, “Just as a temporary three-day humanitarian ceasefire negotiated by Egypt and the United States went into effect on the morning of Friday, 1 August, a unit of soldiers from the Israeli army’s Givati Brigade conducted a tunnel incursion in Rafah, provoking fire from Palestinian resistance fighters.
“Two Israeli soldiers were killed in the ensuing firefight and another, Hadar Goldin, went missing. It was later determined that Goldin died in the battle but, in the immediate aftermath, the Israeli army operated under the assumption that he had been captured.
“Ofer Winter was napping when he woke up to news of Goldin’s possible capture. He told Yediot Ahronot’s Yossi Yehoshua:
'At 9 am, half an hour after I put my head down, the Deputy Brigade Commander woke me up: “Come quickly, it’s best you be here.” We asked for a snapshot, we wanted information. We didn’t think there was an abduction yet. While inquiring if everyone was there, I commanded Sagiv, the Armored Forces Commander operating under my orders, to start moving from Hirbat Hiza’a, which was where he was, toward Rafah. Just then, I got the message: “it’s not green in our eyes” – in other words, not everyone had been found. We were missing a soldier. At 9:36, after inquiries with the battalion commander on site, I announced on the communication system the word that no one wants to say – “Hannibal.” In other words, there had been an abduction. I instructed all the forces to move forward, to occupy space, so the abductors would not be able to move.'
“The Hannibal Directive is an unwritten Israeli military protocol for executing captured Israeli soldiers to avoid politically painful prisoner swaps. Although its existence has been reported in the Israeli press since the 1980s, this interview with Winter appears to be the most frank acknowledgement of its use.
“The idea is to prevent the captors from taking the soldier alive, effectively denying Palestinian or other Arab resistance groups a bargaining chip down the line and relieving Israeli leaders of the political fallout from having to make concessions (such as prisoner swaps) to secure the soldier’s release.”
This is not the first time that Colonel Ofer Winter has sparked controversy from his description of the Israeli assault on Gaza. As the highest-ranking officer of one of the Israeli military's most elite units, Winter has a lot of power and influence. Early on in the Israeli assault, Winter declared the war to be a “holy war”. In a letter to the soldiers under his command, on July 10th, 2014, Winter wrote that the objective of the invasion was to “wipe out” an “enemy who defames” God.
He continued, “History has chosen us to be the sharp edge of the bayonet of fighting the terrorist enemy ‘from Gaza’ which curses, defames and abuses the God of Israel’s battles.”
His letter ended, “God, the Lord of Israel, make our path successful, as we are about to fight for Your People, Israel, against an enemy who defames your name. In the name of the IDF fighters and, in particular, the fighters and commanders from the Brigade, make the phrase 'For the Lord your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.' come true, and we shall answer: Amen.”
The civilians killed in that bombardment included a number of families who were crushed to death when their homes were hit by airstrikes – like the Zo'rob family, who lost five children, including 7-year-old twins Amir and Odai, their 8-year-old brother Khaled, 10-year-old Shahd and 12-year-old Rawan.
In his interview with Yedioth Ahranoth, Colonel Ofer Winter called the civilian population in Gaza “a partner of terror” that “gets what they choose”.
Journalist Rania Khalek with the Electronic Intifada wrote, “Just as a temporary three-day humanitarian ceasefire negotiated by Egypt and the United States went into effect on the morning of Friday, 1 August, a unit of soldiers from the Israeli army’s Givati Brigade conducted a tunnel incursion in Rafah, provoking fire from Palestinian resistance fighters.
“Two Israeli soldiers were killed in the ensuing firefight and another, Hadar Goldin, went missing. It was later determined that Goldin died in the battle but, in the immediate aftermath, the Israeli army operated under the assumption that he had been captured.
“Ofer Winter was napping when he woke up to news of Goldin’s possible capture. He told Yediot Ahronot’s Yossi Yehoshua:
'At 9 am, half an hour after I put my head down, the Deputy Brigade Commander woke me up: “Come quickly, it’s best you be here.” We asked for a snapshot, we wanted information. We didn’t think there was an abduction yet. While inquiring if everyone was there, I commanded Sagiv, the Armored Forces Commander operating under my orders, to start moving from Hirbat Hiza’a, which was where he was, toward Rafah. Just then, I got the message: “it’s not green in our eyes” – in other words, not everyone had been found. We were missing a soldier. At 9:36, after inquiries with the battalion commander on site, I announced on the communication system the word that no one wants to say – “Hannibal.” In other words, there had been an abduction. I instructed all the forces to move forward, to occupy space, so the abductors would not be able to move.'
“The Hannibal Directive is an unwritten Israeli military protocol for executing captured Israeli soldiers to avoid politically painful prisoner swaps. Although its existence has been reported in the Israeli press since the 1980s, this interview with Winter appears to be the most frank acknowledgement of its use.
“The idea is to prevent the captors from taking the soldier alive, effectively denying Palestinian or other Arab resistance groups a bargaining chip down the line and relieving Israeli leaders of the political fallout from having to make concessions (such as prisoner swaps) to secure the soldier’s release.”
This is not the first time that Colonel Ofer Winter has sparked controversy from his description of the Israeli assault on Gaza. As the highest-ranking officer of one of the Israeli military's most elite units, Winter has a lot of power and influence. Early on in the Israeli assault, Winter declared the war to be a “holy war”. In a letter to the soldiers under his command, on July 10th, 2014, Winter wrote that the objective of the invasion was to “wipe out” an “enemy who defames” God.
He continued, “History has chosen us to be the sharp edge of the bayonet of fighting the terrorist enemy ‘from Gaza’ which curses, defames and abuses the God of Israel’s battles.”
His letter ended, “God, the Lord of Israel, make our path successful, as we are about to fight for Your People, Israel, against an enemy who defames your name. In the name of the IDF fighters and, in particular, the fighters and commanders from the Brigade, make the phrase 'For the Lord your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.' come true, and we shall answer: Amen.”
11 sept 2014
The United States government has reportedly threatened the Palestinian Authority (PA) with economic sanctions if Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas continue to insist on presenting his plan for the end of Israel's illegal occupation to the United Nations.
Israeli news publication "Walla" quoted both American and Israeli sources in reporting that Secretary of State John Kerry threatened the Palestinian delegation if they were to approach the UN with such a resolution.
He warned, according to the Palestinian News Network (PNN), that pursuit of such a course would leave the PA in a difficult position, facing economic sanctions -- fundamentally contrary to the State Department's continued narrative of continuing peace talks and a vast spectrum of denunciatory rhetoric, in addition to contrary statements surrounding settlement expansion and numerous other Israeli violations, including those of longstanding International Law.
--------The IMEMC's coverage of Secretary of State John Kerry's progress, or lack thereof, in securing peace in the Middle East, is extensive.
Mr. Kerry, who is a member of the Middle East Quartet, reportedly warned that Washington would not only impose these measures, but would equally try to convince its allies to adopt a similar stance.
See related: Kerry Plan Includes Palestinian Recognition of Israel as Jewish State
Kerry Asks Jordan, Saudi Arabia, To Support Palestinian Recognition Of “Jewish State”
Note: The second report linked above, which was in fact sourced in Israel, has been adamantly denied as being accurate, by the US State Department.
US officials, as if by default, reportedly believes that the future of the Palestinian state should be determined through negotiations with Israel, regardless of several failed attempts at such an approach, in the past, and the Israeli government's continued failure to keep their own political promises -- even in light of the vulgar attrocites recently committed by the military, on the Gaza Strip, over the course of the summer months.
According to the PNN, presenting the Palestinian case to the UN is seen by Washington as a unilateral decision on the Palestinian State, which goes against its vision of negotiations with Israel as being fundamental.
Economic sanctions, thus, serve to discourage such a move by the PA.
Related: US Implies to Block Abbas' UN Resolution Proposal
Mustafa Barghouti, General Secretary of the Palestinian National Initiative, in speaking to the PNN, dismissed the threat and asserted that the PA is within its legitimate rights in approaching the UN and can go equally to the International Criminal Court.
Barghouti additionally highlighted the fact that the United States "talks about the need to respect human rights everywhere and respect international law," and now asks:
"Why is it forbidden for Palestine to exercise this right?"
Israeli news publication "Walla" quoted both American and Israeli sources in reporting that Secretary of State John Kerry threatened the Palestinian delegation if they were to approach the UN with such a resolution.
He warned, according to the Palestinian News Network (PNN), that pursuit of such a course would leave the PA in a difficult position, facing economic sanctions -- fundamentally contrary to the State Department's continued narrative of continuing peace talks and a vast spectrum of denunciatory rhetoric, in addition to contrary statements surrounding settlement expansion and numerous other Israeli violations, including those of longstanding International Law.
--------The IMEMC's coverage of Secretary of State John Kerry's progress, or lack thereof, in securing peace in the Middle East, is extensive.
Mr. Kerry, who is a member of the Middle East Quartet, reportedly warned that Washington would not only impose these measures, but would equally try to convince its allies to adopt a similar stance.
See related: Kerry Plan Includes Palestinian Recognition of Israel as Jewish State
Kerry Asks Jordan, Saudi Arabia, To Support Palestinian Recognition Of “Jewish State”
Note: The second report linked above, which was in fact sourced in Israel, has been adamantly denied as being accurate, by the US State Department.
US officials, as if by default, reportedly believes that the future of the Palestinian state should be determined through negotiations with Israel, regardless of several failed attempts at such an approach, in the past, and the Israeli government's continued failure to keep their own political promises -- even in light of the vulgar attrocites recently committed by the military, on the Gaza Strip, over the course of the summer months.
According to the PNN, presenting the Palestinian case to the UN is seen by Washington as a unilateral decision on the Palestinian State, which goes against its vision of negotiations with Israel as being fundamental.
Economic sanctions, thus, serve to discourage such a move by the PA.
Related: US Implies to Block Abbas' UN Resolution Proposal
Mustafa Barghouti, General Secretary of the Palestinian National Initiative, in speaking to the PNN, dismissed the threat and asserted that the PA is within its legitimate rights in approaching the UN and can go equally to the International Criminal Court.
Barghouti additionally highlighted the fact that the United States "talks about the need to respect human rights everywhere and respect international law," and now asks:
"Why is it forbidden for Palestine to exercise this right?"
www.hrw.org
Human Rights Watch says that Israel is likely to have committed war crimes in the Gaza Strip, this just a day after the army announced that five criminal investigations were being directed towards incidents involving its forces.
The group stated, Thursday, that in three cases it has examined, Israel caused "numerous civilian casualties in violation of the laws of war", according to AFP.
The recent 50-day military assault on the region saw more than 2,100 Palestinians -- most of whom were civilians, including nearly 600 children -- killed by Israeli forces in a series of relentlessly brutal strikes coming from air, land and sea.
73 casualites have been accounted for on the Israeli side, 67 of which were soldier deaths.
The three incidents cited by Human Rights Watch were two separate shellings of UN schools in northern Gaza, on July 24 and 30, as well as a guided missile strike which targeted another UN school in the southern city of Rafah, on August 3.
See related -- UN: Israel Used UNRWA School For Military Operations
The attacks killed a total of 45 people including 17 children, the group said.
"Two of the three attacks Human Rights Watch investigated... did not appear to target a military objective or were otherwise unlawfully indiscriminate. The third attack in Rafah was unlawfully disproportionate if not otherwise indiscriminate."
"Unlawful attacks carried out willfully -- that is, deliberately or recklessly -- are war crimes," it said.
According to the Israeli military, a criminal investigation into five incidents has already been launched, including the July 24 case, where Israeli shelling killed at least 15 people at a UN school in Beit Hanoun, in northern Gaza.
Several dozen other cases are also reportedly on the agenda for potential criminal investigation, but the July 30 or August 3 incidents have not been mentioned.
The official said, AFP further reports, that the army had already dismissed seven incidents referred for review, including the death of eight members of a single family in an Israeli air strike on their home, in addition to the killing of a media worker.
Search IMEMC: "journalists"
"Israel has a long record of failing to undertake credible investigations into alleged war crimes," HRW additionally stated.
A number of international rights groups, including the United Nations, have verbaly condemned Israel for numerous attacks. Even Washington slammed the July 24 UN school attack, but refrained from placing the blame squarely on Israel.
US Senate support for the merciless and indiuscriminate attacks on Gaza's civilian population was unanimous during the assault, leaving concerned citizens worldwide in a state of shock as attrocities mounted by the hour.
The identities of the slain have not entirely been accounted for, as of yet.
Palestinian officials have threatened Israel with action at the International Criminal Court over a number of allegations and generations-long violations against the rights of Palestinian people, to include the blatant breaching of several UN resolutions.
Even Hamas has signed a proposal for Palestinians to join the body, potentially opening itself up to investigation, yet no action has currently been taken, with the Israeli state continuing their typical routine of violating ceasefire agreements, expanding settlements and continuing to imprison Palestinians by the dozen on a near-daily basis, while the Palestinian Authority continues to coordinate its policing efforts with Israeli security.
Hamas: HRW findings evidence to Israel's falsifications
The spokesperson of Hamas in Gaza, Sami abu-Zuhri, said the Human Rights Watch probe findings were evidence to Israel’s falsifications.
Abu Zuhri said that the HRW findings that there were no clear military targets in the parameters of three UN-run schools bombed by Israel testify to the false allegations of 'Israel'.
'Israel' justified its attacks on the school by claiming that the Palestinian resistance used the schools as military sites during the offensive.
The HRW said on Thursday that "Two of the three attacks Human Rights Watch investigated... did not appear to target a military objective or were otherwise unlawfully indiscriminate. The third attack in Rafah was unlawfully disproportionate if not otherwise indiscriminate."
The attacks killed a total of 45 people including 17 children, the HRW pointed out.
In a relevant comment, the spokesperson considered the Israeli army’s recent decision to open its own criminal investigation into some war incidents as worthless.
The HRW conducted an investigation into three attacks and found that the Israeli targeting of the three school were randomly, accusing the occupation of committing war crimes against the Palestinian citizens in the Gaza Strip during its offensive.
Human Rights Watch says that Israel is likely to have committed war crimes in the Gaza Strip, this just a day after the army announced that five criminal investigations were being directed towards incidents involving its forces.
The group stated, Thursday, that in three cases it has examined, Israel caused "numerous civilian casualties in violation of the laws of war", according to AFP.
The recent 50-day military assault on the region saw more than 2,100 Palestinians -- most of whom were civilians, including nearly 600 children -- killed by Israeli forces in a series of relentlessly brutal strikes coming from air, land and sea.
73 casualites have been accounted for on the Israeli side, 67 of which were soldier deaths.
The three incidents cited by Human Rights Watch were two separate shellings of UN schools in northern Gaza, on July 24 and 30, as well as a guided missile strike which targeted another UN school in the southern city of Rafah, on August 3.
See related -- UN: Israel Used UNRWA School For Military Operations
The attacks killed a total of 45 people including 17 children, the group said.
"Two of the three attacks Human Rights Watch investigated... did not appear to target a military objective or were otherwise unlawfully indiscriminate. The third attack in Rafah was unlawfully disproportionate if not otherwise indiscriminate."
"Unlawful attacks carried out willfully -- that is, deliberately or recklessly -- are war crimes," it said.
According to the Israeli military, a criminal investigation into five incidents has already been launched, including the July 24 case, where Israeli shelling killed at least 15 people at a UN school in Beit Hanoun, in northern Gaza.
Several dozen other cases are also reportedly on the agenda for potential criminal investigation, but the July 30 or August 3 incidents have not been mentioned.
The official said, AFP further reports, that the army had already dismissed seven incidents referred for review, including the death of eight members of a single family in an Israeli air strike on their home, in addition to the killing of a media worker.
Search IMEMC: "journalists"
"Israel has a long record of failing to undertake credible investigations into alleged war crimes," HRW additionally stated.
A number of international rights groups, including the United Nations, have verbaly condemned Israel for numerous attacks. Even Washington slammed the July 24 UN school attack, but refrained from placing the blame squarely on Israel.
US Senate support for the merciless and indiuscriminate attacks on Gaza's civilian population was unanimous during the assault, leaving concerned citizens worldwide in a state of shock as attrocities mounted by the hour.
The identities of the slain have not entirely been accounted for, as of yet.
Palestinian officials have threatened Israel with action at the International Criminal Court over a number of allegations and generations-long violations against the rights of Palestinian people, to include the blatant breaching of several UN resolutions.
Even Hamas has signed a proposal for Palestinians to join the body, potentially opening itself up to investigation, yet no action has currently been taken, with the Israeli state continuing their typical routine of violating ceasefire agreements, expanding settlements and continuing to imprison Palestinians by the dozen on a near-daily basis, while the Palestinian Authority continues to coordinate its policing efforts with Israeli security.
Hamas: HRW findings evidence to Israel's falsifications
The spokesperson of Hamas in Gaza, Sami abu-Zuhri, said the Human Rights Watch probe findings were evidence to Israel’s falsifications.
Abu Zuhri said that the HRW findings that there were no clear military targets in the parameters of three UN-run schools bombed by Israel testify to the false allegations of 'Israel'.
'Israel' justified its attacks on the school by claiming that the Palestinian resistance used the schools as military sites during the offensive.
The HRW said on Thursday that "Two of the three attacks Human Rights Watch investigated... did not appear to target a military objective or were otherwise unlawfully indiscriminate. The third attack in Rafah was unlawfully disproportionate if not otherwise indiscriminate."
The attacks killed a total of 45 people including 17 children, the HRW pointed out.
In a relevant comment, the spokesperson considered the Israeli army’s recent decision to open its own criminal investigation into some war incidents as worthless.
The HRW conducted an investigation into three attacks and found that the Israeli targeting of the three school were randomly, accusing the occupation of committing war crimes against the Palestinian citizens in the Gaza Strip during its offensive.
