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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings & Torture |
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July 31st,
2009 - Israel Admits White Phosphorus Use |
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Israel Admits White
Phosphorus Use From Al Jazeera July 31, 2009 Israel has admitted to using
white phosphorus during its war on the Gaza Strip earlier this year, but says
it did so in accordance with international law. The admission came in a
163-page document published by the Israeli foreign ministry on Thursday ahead
of a UN report next week. The Israeli army "used
munitions containing white phosphorus" in Gaza, the document said, but
it denied violating international law, saying it had not fired such weapons
inside populated areas. Al Jazeera's Sherine Tadros,
reporting from Jerusalem, said the Israeli army had initially denied using
white phosphorus, a chemical agent that causes severe burns. "During the war, when
we first started seeing the white phosphorous, the Israeli army said that
everything it was using was in compliance with international law; it would
not tell us whether or not it was using it," she said. Legitimate use "As the campaign went
on, it became very obvious [on television] that it was being used and the
Israeli army, as well as government spokesmen, told us that it was being
used," our correspondent said. "The caveat that the
Israeli army pressed on was that it was being used within the rules of war;
that meant it was not being used amid a civilian population and that it was
being used to provide a smokescreen legitimately, as opposed to
illegitimately." International law permits
the use of white phosphorus as an "obscurant" to cover troop
movements and prevent enemies from using certain guided weapons. The Israeli government
report follows charges from the UN and human rights groups that Israeli
forces committed war crimes and violated international law during the
operation. UN officials have also said
that they have evidence that white phosphorus was used in an attack on the UN
relief agency's main building in Gaza that left three people injured. But the government defended
its military campaign as a "necessary and proportionate" response
to Hamas rocket fire at Israel. "Israel had both a
right and an obligation to take military action against Hamas in Gaza to stop
Hamas' almost incessant rocket and mortar attacks," it said. Misconduct investigation The Israeli government also
said it is investigating 100 complaints of misconduct by its forces during
the three week war that began on December 27. Our correspondent said the
report follows several testimonies from witnesses and human rights
organisations about the Israeli military's conduct. "What we've seen in the
past few months since the end of the war are various human rights reports
from Amnesty International, the United Nations, Human Rights Watch, as well
as testimonies coming out from army soldiers themselves," she said. "What really ties all
of these reports together is the idea that there was no proportionality and a
deliberate use of force against the civilian population in Gaza." Israeli ‘acknowledgment’ John Ging, the head of the
United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in Gaza, welcomed the report
as an "acknowledgment that an investigation has to be done into what
happened" during the conflict. But he told Al Jazeera that
the process has taken "far too long". "What we actually need
is an independent investigation that is credible for both sides," he
said. "The litmus test is
that [any investigation] has to be credible to both sides. As is well
documented, both sides have certain concerns and they have to be addressed. "We have to see the
rule of international law applied and upheld, even-handedly, with the
confidence of both populations." Israel has consistently said
its troops respected international law during the war which ended in January. Palestinian officials say
1,417 Palestinians were killed, including 926 civilians. But Israel says that the
number killed is considerably lower, and that only 295 of the dead were
civilians. External link: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/07/200973020830886898.html Israeli report defends
actions during Gaza war By Mark Lavie Associated Press July 31, 2009 Jerusalem - An Israeli
government report released Thursday insisted that "incessant" Hamas
rocket attacks forced Israel to hit Gaza hard earlier this year, countering
charges of war crimes but acknowledging that more than a dozen criminal
inquiries are underway. The 160-page report was
called the first comprehensive Israeli government study of the punishing
offensive in December and January that killed more than 1,100 Palestinians. It was an attempt to answer
charges from Palestinians, the U.N. and human rights groups that Israeli
forces committed war crimes and violated international law during the
three-week operation. Charges have included indiscriminate and intentional
firing that killed civilians and destroyed property. During the conflict, Israeli
warplanes, tanks and artillery obliterated Palestinian government buildings
and destroyed or damaged thousands of apartments, houses, businesses and
factories. Israeli officials have acknowledged that their soldiers used additional
firepower to keep their own casualties down. Ten Israeli soldiers were
killed during the conflict, along with three civilians who died in rocket
attacks. The scope of the destruction
has triggered a flood of scathing reports from human rights groups. Defending Israeli actions,
the Israeli government report said it was not meant to be an "assertion
of infallibility," but rejected the charges one by one, attributing
excessive damage and casualties to understandable wartime mistakes. The report said Israel is
investigating about 100 complaints and has opened 13 criminal inquiries. A
military statement Thursday said criminal cases under investigation now
number 15. "Israel had both a
right and an obligation to take military action against Hamas in Gaza to stop
Hamas' almost incessant rocket and mortar attacks," the report's
executive summary stated, noting that 12,000 rockets and mortars were fired
at Israel between 2000 and 2008, including nearly 3,000 in 2008 alone. "Under international
law, Israel had every right to use military force to defend its
civilians," the report said. The report said 1 million
Israelis were threatened by Hamas rockets, tens of thousands were traumatized
and thousands fled their homes. It called the offensive, which began Dec. 26
and lasted three weeks, a "necessary and proportionate" response. Hamas official Mushair
al-Masri rejected the report, repeating the charge that Israel committed war
crimes in Gaza. "This report is ridiculous and stupid and does not
deserve a response," he said Thursday. Western-backed Palestinian
President Mahmoud Abbas has denounced the Hamas rocket fire but charged that
Israel's response was excessive. The report analyzes at
length the steps Israeli forces took to minimize civilian casualties in Gaza,
while claiming that some such casualties were inevitable because Hamas
fighters took up positions in crowded neighborhoods. It said international law is
violated only "when there is an intention to target civilians," and
Israel had no such intention - in contrast to Hamas targeting Israeli
civilians with its rockets. The report explains damage
to U.N. facilities by blaming Hamas for setting up rocket launchers nearby. In one of the specific case
studies, the Israeli report dismissed charges that dozens of Palestinian
civilians were killed or wounded by white phosphorous shells, which are used
to lay down smoke screens. In a footnote, the report
claimed, "There appear to have been no documented deaths in Gaza
resulting from exposure to white phosphorus itself." The report
acknowledged that shell casings with phosphorus residue could have hurt some
people and started fires, but "it does not appear that damage from this
use can be regarded as excessive." Amnesty International is
among the groups charging Israel with war crimes. In a report this month, the
group deplored Israel's use of less-precise artillery shells and white
phosphorous in built-up areas. It also accused Israeli forces of using
Palestinians as "human shields" and frequently blocking civilians
from receiving medical care and humanitarian aid. Internal investigations into
the use of white phosphorous have "uncovered no violations of
international law," the report said, but noted that some inquiries are
still in progress. The report detailed steps
aimed at limiting civilian casualties, counting 2.5 million leaflets and
165,000 phone calls to civilians warning them to leave targeted areas. Also,
it said, humanitarian aid flowed into Gaza throughout the conflict. Copyright © 2009 The
Associated Press. External link: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jAwXQmJYZ4JbqpBX5U2wyPLArdngD99OTDL80 |