oneworldtalk

Jason Koutsoukis in Jerusalem

March 21, 2009

ISRAEL is under mounting international pressure to begin its own investigation into possible war crimes committed during its January assault on Hamas in the Gaza Strip that killed at least 1300 Palestinians.

The renewed calls follow the publication of damning testimony from Israeli soldiers who took part in the war alleging that unarmed civilians were killed under loose rules of engagement, and detailing the wanton destruction of Palestinian property.

The soldiers' accounts have caused uproar across Israel and prompted an immediate response from the Israel Defence Forces' chief advocate, Brigadier General Avichai Mendelblit, who ordered two immediate investigations into the shooting of a mother and her two children, and the death of an elderly woman.

The allegations were raised by war veterans who were graduates of the Yitzhak Rabin pre-military academy and took part in a forum to discuss their experiences.

The Defence Minister, Ehud Barak, backed the military investigation, saying he was sure it would examine the matter with all seriousness. "We have the most moral army in the world," he told Israel Radio. " I have no doubt that every incident will be individually examined."

Israeli human rights groups expressed outrage at the testimony. In a letter sent to the Attorney-General, Menachem Mazuz, a coalition of 13 Israeli groups said it was time to stop whitewashing suspected crimes in Gaza.

"The Government's failure to establish an independent investigation constitutes a violation of Israel's responsibilities under international law," it said.

Michael Sfard, a lawyer for one of the groups, Yesh Din, said an extra-military body had to be established to investigate the numerous new allegations.

"Until today, about six weeks since the end of military operations in Gaza, not a single criminal investigation has begun despite hundreds of testimonies which raise suspicion about violations of international law and of war crimes," he said.

"The testimonies … cast a shadow not just over the specific soldiers who carried out these deeds, but also on high-ranking officials who gave the commands to open fire. If these orders were given as described in the testimonies, then both the issuing of the orders and their implementation are criminal offences. If Israel does not investigate its own offences, other countries will have to."

On Thursday, the United Nations human rights investigator, Richard Falk, said Israel's offensive against Hamas in the densely populated Gaza Strip appeared to constitute "a war crime of the greatest magnitude".

Mr Falk, who is the UN's special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, said the Geneva Convention required warring forces to distinguish between military targets and surrounding civilians. "If it is not possible to do so, then launching the attacks is inherently unlawful and would seem to constitute a war crime of the greatest magnitude under international law," he said.

Mr Falk's comments came as a group of 16 judges and scholars who participated in war crimes commissions in Darfur and Rwanda sent an open letter to the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, calling on the UN to investigate alleged breaches of international law committed during the war in Gaza.

The signatories included Archbishop Desmond Tutu and the former UN human rights high commissioner, Mary Robinson.

But many Israelis disputed the accounts of misconduct.

Major Gur Rosenblat, a reservist who commanded more than 100 men during the war in Gaza, told the Herald: "I was there. I fought in Gaza and I am telling you that I have no idea, no idea, what these other soldiers are talking about … I accept that mistakes were made, but this was war."