[Vanasalus]

Killing of 30 people in Gaza when army shelled house full of evacuees 'has all hallmarks of war crime', says high commissioner for human rights.

The Israeli military may have committed war crimes in Gaza, the UN's most senior human rights official said tonight, as Israeli troops pressed on with their increasingly deadly offensive in defiance of a UN security council resolution demanding a ceasefire.

Navi Pillay, the UN high commissioner for human rights, singled out the killing this week of up to 30 Palestinians in Zeitoun, south-east of Gaza City, when Israel shelled a house where its troops had told about 110 civilians to take shelter.

Pillay, a former international criminal court judge from South Africa, told the BBC the incident "appears to have all the elements of war crimes". She called for "credible, independent and transparent" investigations into possible violations of humanitarian law.

The accusation came as Israel kept up its two-week-old air and ground offensive in Gaza and dismissed as "unworkable" the UN security council resolution calling for "an immediate, durable and fully respected ceasefire". Protests against the offensive were held across the world today as diplomacy to halt the conflict appeared to falter.

With the Palestinian casualty toll rising to around 780 dead and more than 3,100 injured, fresh evidence emerged today of the Zeitoun killings.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said in a report it was "one of the gravest incidents since the beginning of operations" against Hamas militants in Gaza by the Israeli military on 27 December.

OCHA said the incident took place on 4 January, a day after Israel began its ground offensive in Gaza. According to testimonies gathered by the UN, Israeli soldiers evacuated about 110 Palestinians to a single-storey house in Zeitoun. The evacuees were instructed to stay indoors for their safety but 24 hours later the Israeli army shelled the house. About half the Palestinians sheltering in the house were children, OCHA said. The report also complains that the Israeli Defence Force prevented medical teams from entering the area to evacuate the wounded.

The OCHA report does not accuse Israel of a deliberate act but calls for an investigation. Responding to the report, an Israeli military spokeswoman, Avital Leibovich, told AFP news agency: "From initial checking, we don't have knowledge of this incident. We started an inquiry but we still don't know about it."

Among the dead were nine members of the Samouni family; a picture of three of the family's children in blood-stained clothing laid on a morgue floor and in front of their grieving father was shown in the Guardian on Tuesday. The father, Wael Samouni, said dozens of people had been sheltering in the house after Israeli troops ordered them and neighbours to stay inside.

"Those who survived, and were able, walked two kilometres to Salah Ed Din road before being transported to the hospital in civilian vehicles," the UN said.

Rescuers from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said they were able to reach the area on Wednesday only after being allowed safe passage by Israel.

The ICRC issued a statement on the incident yesterday, accusing the Israeli military of "unacceptable" delays in allowing medics safe access to injured Gazans.

More than 40 Palestinians were killed in another incident on Tuesday after missiles exploded outside a UN school that had been sheltering hundreds of people in the Jabaliya refugee camp, despite the UN saying the school was clearly marked with a UN flag and its position reported to Israeli military.

More than 750 Palestinians have died since the start of the Israeli military operation. More than half of Gaza's population are children, and the Palestinian ministry of health said about 42% of the casualties have been children.

Unicef said at least 100 children and minors were killed in the first 10 days of fighting. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, which posts staff at hospitals to track casualties, put this number at more than 160.

Abdel-Rahman Ghandour, the Jordan-based spokesman for Unicef in the Middle East and North Africa, said: "We are talking about urban war. The density of the population is so high, it's bound to hurt children … This is a unique conflict, where there is nowhere to go."

Israel has accused Hamas of using civilians as human shields and has said militants have fired rockets from rooftops of homes and mosques.

Mark Regev, an Israeli government spokesman, said: "Israel wants to see no harm to the children of Gaza. On the contrary, we would like to see their children and our children grow up without the fear of violence. Until now, Hamas has deliberately prevented that from becoming reality."

Fighting in Gaza has continued despite yesterday's UN security council resolution calling for an "immediate" and "durable" ceasefire and the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza. The resolution was passed with 14 out of 15 members in support of the resolution. The US abstained from the vote.

LINK

Israel, as usual....

[Captain Sam]

War, as usual....

Fixed.

[Maas]

Reminds me of all them other "anti-semitic-ish" human right reports who were ... "all" ... "totally" "exagerated".

[MVictorP]

Fixed.

War? I don't call it war. War is fought between armies; There is but one army here, butchering civilians wholesale. Here, we've got the IDF gathering people in a single house to better kill them and say "oops!". This is as much war as the Holocaust was war, but with a disgusting layer of PR hypocrisy about it.

It is a war crime, for crying out loud, much more disgusting than what a suicide bomber would commit.

How far are you willing to abandon your humanity for the sake of pushing for Israel, Cap? What are you willing to accept for rapture? Asfar as zionists are concerned, I just can't see what at which point will these atrocities finally begin to matter.

Unless, of course, Israel is on the receiving end, in which case they get the violins out with much more less.

[Arthur2sheds_Jackson]

I wonder how long it will be before someone attempts to twist this thread into a discussion on the exact definition of a 'war crime'

[Lucky Strike]

If Israel would just respond with extreme force, it might actually teach the terrorists a lesson. I say, enough pussyfooting around: "You want to shoot rockets into our country? We'll grind you into the dirt." I won't be shedding any tears for a people who are harboring and supporting murderous terrorists, which the Palestinians are - hell, they even elected them!

[Gletkin]

The UN can "level" all they want.
The USA would abort any serious sanction by the UN against Israel.
Even if they do pass some resolution it would have no concrete effect against Israel. Like the resolution equating Zionism with racism. What effect did that resolution actually have?
Or even Security Council resolutions like 242?

That's why the UN talks about Israel all time but doesn't actually do anything about her.
The only Mideast country they took concrete action against was Iraq under Saddam.
Of course, the UN's policy just happened to co-incide with the USA's.

But regarding Israel all the UN really does is provide cathartic target practice for trigger-happy IDF troops.

[Nattering Nabob]

The democratically elected government of Palestine launched hundreds of rockets purposely targeted at civilians and the UN never even batted an eye.

Israel only needs to label the IDF as "terrorists" and the UN will forget all about investigating anything that happened.

[ThereBeDragons]

The UN does condemn the rocket attacks and the suicide bombings of Hamas. The difference is that, for some reason, nobody cares.

Another reason more people publicly condemn Israel is that nobody really defends Hamas when they blow up a school bus; there's sort of this unwritten universal consensus that suicide attacks on school buses are inexcusable crimes, so there's no need to point it out because everyone agrees. When there is disagreement, all voices become louder.

[Oxymoron]

Where are the war crimes warinings to Nassrallah and the Hamas leaders? Or is shooting Rockets into civilian cities acceptable? Perhaps Israel should stop using presision bombs, and buy some vintage B-17.

[Gletkin]

The democratically elected government of Palestine launched hundreds of rockets purposely targeted at civilians and the UN never even batted an eye.

The Afghan Mooj 20 years ago did the same. Although I think they actually managed to kill quite a few civilians with their rocket and mortar barrages. They even blew a civilian airliner out of the sky with a shoulder-fired SAM at least once.

But when the Soviets went apeshit over Mooj activity they were roundly condemned as "war criminals". Using "disporportionate force" against civilians.
Provided movie material for Sly Stallone and Hollywood though.

Same tactics, same ideology even. Just different targets. But that's what makes all the difference.
If US-Israeli relations ever go down the crapper, then we'll start regarding people like Hamas as "freedom fighters".

The difference is that, for some reason, nobody cares.

About the UN? Only if
1) their views are congruent with ours
2) we're a global power

If the only the first standard isn't met, then yes the UN is ignored.
If both standards aren't met, then we start disguising ourselves as New Age healers.

[Maas]

The democratically elected government of Palestine launched hundreds of rockets purposely targeted at civilians and the UN never even batted an eye.

that's just bullshit

[Truth-a-naut]

So Maas, Hamas was not voted in?

Wow, the UN. Have they stopped the actual genocide in Sudan yet? Or is it verboten as Arabs and other 'oppressed' are the ones carrying it out?

[Maas]

no.. it's the other part about the UN that's just bullshit.

[Captain Sam]

War? I don't call it war. War is fought between armies; There is but one army here, butchering civilians wholesale. Here, we've got the IDF gathering people in a single house to better kill them and say "oops!". This is as much war as the Holocaust was war, but with a disgusting layer of PR hypocrisy about it.

It is a war crime, for crying out loud, much more disgusting than what a suicide bomber would commit.

How far are you willing to abandon your humanity for the sake of pushing for Israel, Cap? What are you willing to accept for rapture? Asfar as zionists are concerned, I just can't see what at which point will these atrocities finally begin to matter.

Unless, of course, Israel is on the receiving end, in which case they get the violins out with much more less.

Gaza (Hamas) does have an army. They're clad in black ski masks and AK-47s. Hamas attacked Israel and Israel retaliated. It's a war. Gaza is a free territory; a quasi-nation.

I'm not "pushing" for Israel, but I feel like I constantly have to defend it because extremist like you constantly blather on about how evil Israel is and must be destroyed ASAP. If it wasn't for people like you, I could take a much more balanced stance.

MVictorP, you're irrational and passionate, but your passion doesn't come from love, it comes from hatred of Israel. You're just a horrible bigot.

[Gletkin]

Or is it verboten as Arabs and other 'oppressed' are the ones carrying it out?

But that's precisely it. Israel is "The Jewish State" right? So bitching about what they do is "verboten" because of the history of anti-Semitism see?
We've got oppressed people fighting other oppressed people and shamelessly (ab)using their histories of victimhood against each other for all they're worth.

Although I do think Israel has an advantage over the Arabs in winning western sympathies simply because they do look more like us (yes, yes, I know about the "browning of Israel" what with the increase of the Sephardic and Mizrahi populations....but compared with the rest of the Middle East they're still pretty bleached).
That, combined with the "I see your colonialism and raise you one Holocaust....no I don't care if you barely had anything to do with it, I can still play this card against you....YES I CAN!!..."

[W01f]

Perhaps Israel should stop using presision bombs, and buy some vintage B-17.

That wouldn't change much.

Hamas attacked Israel and Israel retaliated. It's a war. Gaza is a free territory; a quasi-nation.

Technically this is true. But like I said in another thread a few days ago, it's as much a war as a heavyweight boxer beating up a bratty child who keeps throwing stones at him is a "brawl". Israel has all the right in the world to defend itself from attack but what it's doing right now is beyond excessive. They've sunk to the same level as Hamas. They are terrorizing and slaughtering innocent civilians for revenge, and that's never acceptable under any circumstance.

[Captain Sam]

Technically this is true. But like I said in another thread a few days ago, it's as much a war as a heavyweight boxer beating up a bratty child who keeps throwing stones at him is a "brawl". Israel has all the right in the world to defend itself from attack but what it's doing right now is beyond excessive. They've sunk to the same level as Hamas. They are terrorizing and slaughtering innocent civilians for revenge, and that's never acceptable under any circumstance.

I agree that Israel has used excessive force, and I think I actually agree with most of your post.

Finally, someone rational.

[Oxymoron]

as much a war as a heavyweight boxer beating up a bratty child who keeps throwing stones at him is a "braw

A bratty child killed a heavywieght with a stone before.

[Maas]

Technically this is true. But like I said in another thread a few days ago, it's as much a war as a heavyweight boxer beating up a bratty child who keeps throwing stones at him is a "brawl". Israel has all the right in the world to defend itself from attack but what it's doing right now is beyond excessive. They've sunk to the same level as Hamas. They are terrorizing and slaughtering innocent civilians for revenge, and that's never acceptable under any circumstance

they sunk just on this occasion?

I find it hard to believe that somebody or a group of people mental state suddenly can change in 2 weeks.
Actually, I find it impossible. They have been like this for a long time. Decades of human rights violations have been written you know.