Hamas calls Israeli report on Gaza killings a Nazi-style whitewash, Israeli groups demand external investigation

Hamas calls Israeli report on Gaza killings a Nazi-style whitewash

Date: 23 / 04 / 2009  Time:  10:07
Gaza – Ma’an –

An Israeli occupation government report labeling the killing of 21 civilians including children the result of “malfunction” was condemned by Hamas on Thursday as proof that the Israeli army is operating under a new “Nazi policy.”

The report, which found by and large that the Israeli occupation terrorist army had acted “morally” and within the bounds of international law, described the death of the Ad-Daya family in Gaza as a “malfunction” and a “mistake.”

Hamas spokesman Ismail Radwan called the report a sign of a new “Nazi policy” constructed in an effort to justify Israeli crimes. He accused Israel of trying to “whitewash its offenses in front of the international law.”

Radwan added in a press release that Israel is trying to mislead and deceive the international community and cited its use of white phosphorus bombs in heavily populated civilian areas as proof of the “massive crime they committed during the war on Gaza.”

The Israeli report was released one week after officials indicated Israel would not cooperate with a UN investigation into alleged war crimes in the Gaza Strip. More than 1,400 Palestinians were killed, including hundreds of women and children, during the three week war in December and January. Ten Israeli soldiers and three civilians were killed.

Israeli groups demand external investigation of Gaza offensive

Thursday April 23, 2009 11:49 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC & Agencies

Following the publication of the results of the Israeli army's investigation into Palestinian civilian deaths during the offensive against Gaza which called the issue an “operational malfunction”, several leftist and human rights groups in Israel have demanded an independent investigation.

Meanwhile, the Israeli occupation government defense minister, Ehud Barak, praised the Israeli terrorist army for conducting the investigation.

Barak said that it “proved, once again, that the Israeli terrorist army is the most ethical army in the world”.

Leftist members of Knesset and a number of Human Rights Groups in Israel criticized the army and said that such an investigation should have been conducted by an external body.

 Israeli terrorist army Deputy Chief of Staff, Dan Harel, claimed that Israeli soldiers never deliberately targeted Palestinian cilvians.

 This statement is totally oblivious of the fact that the army shelled homes, mosques, schools, hospitals, ambulances, and other civilian facilities resulting in a large number of deaths among civilians, including women, children, and elderly.

Meretz party chairman, Chaim Oron, said that the report ignores that fact that the army crossed 'red lines', adding that the investigation had not examined all cases of civilian deaths.

 Meretz Member of Knesset (MK), Illan Ghilon, said that the army's description of the deaths of 295 civilians as an “operational malfunction” was an insult to human life.

 Furthermore, Mohammad Barakah, chairman of the Hadash Party, said that the army is not a research center as it is part of the system which is responsible for the crimes in Gaza.

Barakah added that those who committed the crimes and those responsible for them should all be held responsible.

Arab MK, Ahmad Tibi of the United Arab List, said that it is even a crime when hundreds are killed due to a “malfunction”, and added that the army cannot be considered a credible source as its soldiers are the ones who killed while “the army complains and covers-up”.

 The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, B’Tselem, The Association for Civil Rights in Israel, Yesh Din, Physicians of Human Rights and the Public Committee Against Torture, issued a joint release saying that the army considered killing civilians as rare accidents, while data collected by human rights groups in Israel showed that many Palestinians were killed due to the army’s indiscriminate policy during the war.

The Human Rights groups demanded an external investigation and added that if the army claims that it did not violate the international law in Gaza, then why Israel is rejecting to cooperate with the UN investigation team led by Judge Richard Goldstone from South Africa.

Goldstone is demanding a probe into the Israeli violations and violations carried out by Hamas in Gaza.

The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) based in Gaza said that it is concern at the recent Israeli statements rejecting cooperation with the independent investigation committee mandated by the United Nation.

“The investigation is led by Justice Richard Goldstone, former chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. Both tribunals were established by the United Nations Security Council, acting under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter. The independent fact finding mission is mandated to investigate all violations of international humanitarian law (IHL) and international human rights law, related to the recent 23 day Israeli military offensive in the Gaza Strip”, the PCHR reported.

Israeli soldiers killed during over 1414 Palestinians during the offensive against Gaza. 1177 (83%) were noncombatants, the PCHR said.

The Center added that civilian property in the Gaza Strip was extensively destroyed, initial investigations indicate that 21,000 houses were completely or partially destroyed, 6,636 Dunams of agricultural land were razed, and approximately 1,500 factories and workshops were completely destroyed.

Ten Israeli soldiers, and three civilians, were killed during the war. Israel launched the three-week offensive on December 27, 2008.