Goldstone report

"A culture of impunity in the region has existed for too long," the report's author Richard Goldstone told the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.

"The lack of accountability for war crimes and possible war crimes against humanity has reached a crisis point; the ongoing lack of justice is undermining any hope for a successful peace process and reinforcing an environment that fosters violence," Goldstone added.

Goldstone's report was published earlier this month but was first officially presented to the Council on Tuesday. It urges both Israel and the militant Palestinian group Hamas to launch investigations of their actions in the 22-day conflict that started on Dec. 22, 2008 and left some 1,400 Palestinians, mostly civilians, dead.

If they fail to, the study recommends that the matter be turned over to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

The report is the result of a fact-finding mission to Israel and Gaza undertaken by Goldstone, the South African former chief prosecutor of both the Rwanda and Yugoslavia war crimes tribunals. He concluded that Israelis had committed war crimes and what were likely crimes against humanity last December and January.

"There is strong evidence to suggest that numerous serious violations of internal law, both humanitarian and human rights law, were committed by Israel during the military operations in Gaza," Goldstone said, when he initially presented his report.

In contrast to the large number of Palestinian deaths, Israel suffered only a handful of casualties. But Goldstone was also critical of Hamas, whose rocket attacks on targets within Israel prompted the Israeli's military incursion into Gaza.

"There's no question that the firing of rockets and mortars was deliberate and calculated to cause loss of life and injury to civilians…," Goldstone said. "These actions also amount to serious war crimes and possibly crimes against humanity."

Criticism of the criticism

The allegations have not gone down well with any of those criticized - or their allies.

Hamas has rejected Goldstone's findings, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the study was not objective.

"The game was fixed," Netanyahu said on television after the study was first published. "From this mandate they say in advance that Israel carried out war crimes and now they are filling in the blanks."

The United States, which holds a seat on the Human Rights Council for the first time since the body was formed in 2006, has offered support for Netanyahu's position.

"Although the report addresses all sides of the conflict, its overwhelming focus is on Israel," State Department spokesman Ian Kelly told reporters.

The US warned that the underlying problem was the lack of a peace settlement between Israelis and Palestinians, and that the report should not be allowed to stall attempts to restart negotiations between the two sides.

Widespread support

Goldstone himself has said his work was hindered by a lack of Israeli cooperation. And other countries and organizations have hailed the study.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon has also voiced support for the study.

"I have again expressed my admiration and support for this report, and I have directed our staff to review the contents of this, upholding the principles of accountability," Ban told reporters.

Goldstone's findings confirm allegations by human-rights groups inside and outside of Israel, including B'Tselem, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and medico internal, that Israeli defense forces systemically violated human rights standards during the Gaza offensive. An Israeli government investigation has cleared its soldiers of all such charges.

Author: jc/Reuters/AFP
Editor: Michael Knigge