The United States called on its close ally Israel Tuesday to conduct credible investigations into allegations of war crimes committed by its forces in Gaza, saying it would help the Middle East peace process. Michael Posner, US Assistant Secretary of State, said that Hamas leaders also had a responsibility to investigate crimes and to end what he called its targeting of civilians and use of Palestinian civilians as human shields in the strip. The UN Human Rights Council was holding a one-day debate on a recent report by Richard Goldstone, a South African jurist and former UN war crimes prosecutor. His panel found the Israeli army and Palestinian militants committed war crimes and possibly crimes against humanity during their December-January war. “We encourage Israel to utilize appropriate domestic (judicial) review and meaningful accountability mechanisms to investigate and follow-up on credible allegations,” Posner said in a speech to the Geneva forum. “If undertaken properly and fairly, these reviews can serve as important confidence-building measures that will support the larger essential objective which is a shared quest for justice and lasting peace,” he said. The United States joined the Council, set up three years ago, for the first time earlier this year. – Agencies Posner reiterated Washington's view that the Council paid “grossly disproportionate attention” to Israel, but said that the US delegation was ready to engage in balanced debate. Earlier, Goldstone said a lack of accountability for war crimes committed in the Middle East has reached “crisis point”, undermining any hope for peace in the region. “A culture of impunity in the region has existed for too long,” Goldstone told the Council. The report investigated 36 incidents and interviewed dozens of Palestinian and Israeli witnesses in Gaza and Geneva. Israel's refusal to cooperate with the investigators prevented them from visiting Israel. The report examined one case in which Israeli forces allegedly shelled a house where soldiers had forced Palestinian civilians to assemble, and seven incidents in which civilians were shot while leaving their homes trying to run for safety. On the Palestinian side, the report found that armed groups firing rockets into southern Israel from Gaza failed to distinguish between military targets and the civilian population, and collected several reports of Palestinians being held as human shields by militants. A resolution by Arab and Muslim countries proposes endorsing the report, including a recommendation that it be referred to the powerful UN Security Council in order to require both sides to show they are carrying out credible investigation into alleged abuses during the conflict.
