Morning Edition, January 27, 2009 · Senior U.N. officials and human rights activists are calling for an independent probe of alleged violations of the laws of warfare by Hamas militants and Israeli soldiers during the recent fighting in the Gaza Strip.
Hamas is accused of using Palestinian civilians as human shields and indiscriminately targeting Israeli civilians. Israel is accused of using disproportionate force in civilian areas and failing to protect civilians — especially in the case of the Samouni family. At least 29 members of that extended family were killed by Israeli fire during the war.
Dazed and dirty, 9-year-old Abdullah Samouni walks around the ruined landscape of his Zeitoun neighborhood on the southern edge of Gaza City. Recorded readings of the Quran drift out from a makeshift mourning tent. Almost all of the homes and greenhouses that belonged to this large farming family have been flattened.
The piles of rubble evoke an earthquake — except for the thick tracks and tread marks in the dirt from Israeli tanks and armored bulldozers. Gaping holes scar the few Samouni homes that are still standing.
Abdullah says he and some 20 of his relatives hid in one bedroom of their house when Israeli ground forces swarmed into Zeitoun around 6:30 a.m. on Sunday, Jan. 4. Abdullah says he remembers the red laser light from the soldiers' rifle sights darting around the dark room. One soldier, Abdullah says, asked his father to come forward.
"We were sitting in the bedroom, and the soldiers asked, 'Who is the owner of the house?' My dad went out with his hands up, and the Israeli soldier shot him immediately in the doorway," Abdullah recalls.
His father, 46-year-old Atiyeh, died instantly. One of Abdullah's brothers, 22-year-old Faraj Samouni, says he and others shouted "Children! Children!" in Hebrew as soldiers moved toward the bedroom, some firing their automatic rifles.
Witnesses say the survivors — some wounded — were eventually allowed to leave that house. Many fled to Wa'el al-Samouni's home nearby.
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Medical Crews Unable To Reach Wounded
The Samounis' part of Zeitoun sits on slightly elevated farmland, key terrain for the Israeli army to control the southern approach to Gaza City. Witnesses say over the years militants have regularly launched rockets at Israel from the orange groves around the area.
But witnesses say there was little or no resistance here when the Israelis attacked. Evidence on the ground supports that: There are almost no casings from AK-47 rounds or remnants of rocket-propelled grenades — the main weapons of Hamas militants.
Witnesses in the area say Israeli soldiers knew there were wounded civilians in the Samouni houses but ignored pleas for help. Attempts to contact Palestinian emergency services proved fruitless.
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Violations Of Rules Of War On Both Sides
Attorney Jonathan Drimmer is a war-crimes expert and former top prosecutor for special investigations and war crimes in the U.S. Justice Department.
"You must permit the treatment of civilians who are injured or even noncombatants who are injured. You must permit them medical care," he says.
Drimmer says information available so far suggests that serious violations of the rules of war were committed by both sides. The case against Hamas, Drimmer says, seems clear-cut.
"I think there is no question that Hamas did violate the rules of war by firing indiscriminately into civilian areas. They've done it over a substantial period of time, deliberately targeting civilian areas," he says.
Drimmer says the allegations against Israel — including charges the army used disproportionate force, failed to protect civilians and denied them medical care — all warrant further investigation.
"Anytime you have allegations of summary executions, of denial of medical care, of unnecessary deaths of civilians, it is greatly troubling; it is exactly what the laws of war are designed to prohibit," he says.
excerpted from NPR.org
Listen to the whole story here:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=99889479
I know we are tired of hearing about Gaza, but it seems pretty clear to me that Israeli troops have committed serious violations of the rules war and international laws protecting civilians in war. That Hamas did is obvious. There is no question that shooting rockets into civilians areas is a violation, a war crime. But when a state's forces shoot unarmed civilians at point blank range and deny medical crews access to injured civilians that too is a clear violation. War is messy, and security is hard to ensure in conflict zones. But this is appaling. We are not talking about just artillery shells falling in civilian areas. This is intentional deprivation of aid, and shooting unarmed people when there is no immediate risk to soldiers' lives. This is war crime, and it should be punished. Israeli military leaders should stand in an international court, as should Hamas militants.
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