UNITED NATIONS – A U.N. investigation concluded Tuesday that both sides in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in Gaza committed war crimes and possible crimes against humanity, raising the prospect that officials may seek prosecution in the International Criminal Court.
The probe led by former South African judge Richard Goldstone concluded that "Israel committed actions amounting to war crimes, possibly crimes against humanity," during its Dec. 27-Jan. 18 military operations against Palestinian rocket squads in the Gaza Strip.
In a 575-page report, Goldstone and three other investigators also found evidence "that Palestinian armed groups committed war crimes, as well as possibly crimes against humanity."
Goldstone said the probe, which included interviews as well as a review of documents, photos and 30 videos, was completed Tuesday morning, just hours before the hastily called news conference.
"There should be no impunity for international crimes that are committed," said Goldstone, a veteran war crimes investigator who has served as chief prosecutor for the U.N. criminal tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda. "It's very important that justice should be done."
The report said that Israel's attacks in the Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City, including the shelling of a house where soldiers had forced Palestinian civilians to assemble, amounted to war crimes.
It found seven incidents in which civilians were shot while leaving their homes trying to run for safety, waving white flags and sometimes even following Israeli instructions, as well as the targeting of a mosque at prayer time, killing 15 people, were also war crimes.
Investigators found no evidence the mosque was used to store weapons or for any military activity by Palestinian armed groups, but said they were unable to look more broadly at Israel's allegation that the mosques were used generally by Palestinian groups for storing weapons.
A "direct and intentional attack" on the Al Quds Hospital and an adjacent ambulance depot in Gaza City "may constitute war crimes," the report said.
Several Palestinians told the mission they were used as human shields by the Israeli forces, the report said, noting the case of Majdi Abd Rabbo, a 39-year-old intelligence officer of the Palestinian authority who was forced to walk ahead of the troops as they searched his and his neighbor's house. Rabbo was forced to undress down to his underwear in front of the soldiers and his sons had to strip naked, the report said.
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.
"Where there is no intended military target and the rockets and mortars are launched into civilian areas, they constitute a deliberate attack against the civilian population," the report said. "These actions would constitute war crimes and may amount to crimes against humanity."
Goldstone agreed to head up this latest probe only after he had won agreement from the Belgian president of the Geneva-based U.N. Human Rights Council, which ordered the investigation, to look at Palestinian actions as well.
Israel, which refused to cooperate with the investigation, said the Human Rights Council was biased by its 47-nation constituency, over which Arab and developing nations hold sway. The investigation was ordered earlier this year, before the United States joined as a member.
On Thursday, the subject could arise when the 15-nation Security Council holds its monthly debate on the Middle East. The council this month is presided over by Israel's chief ally, the United States, which has veto power as one of five permanent council members.
State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said the U.S. had just gotten a copy of the report and would review it carefully.
"These are serious issues and Mr. Goldstone makes serious allegations. And we want to take time to review them," Kelly said.
Associated Press writers Frank Jordans and Eliane Engeler in Geneva, Matt Lee in Washington and Josef Federman in Jerusalem contributed to this report.
sculpture in central London. REUTERS/Toby Melville
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