Investigate both sides for war crimes in Gaza

What you need to know:

  • The UN Security Council should move with speed to establish a special tribunal that ultimately, should prosecute anyone found to be culpable for war crimes.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is taking an unacceptable toll on innocent men, women and children.

The world, no doubt, is horrified by the images of the terrible destruction wrought by Israeli air and ground bombardments in the Gaza Strip.

Such indiscriminate bombings and the mounting death toll is what has persuaded the United Nations to warn that the Israeli bombings may amount to war crimes. UN Human Rights High Commissioner Navi Pillay condemned Israeli raids that have killed innocent people on beaches, schools and hospitals in disregard of international humanitarian law.

She said the conflict needed urgent attention due to strong indications that the law had been violated “in a manner that could amount to war crimes”.

She also condemned the radical Palestinian movement, Hamas, for indiscriminate rocket attacks on Israeli civilian neighbourhoods, again in disregard of international conventions.

These are not warnings to be taken lightly, but they will only have effect if the UN moves beyond warnings and institutes investigations against both Israel and Hamas.

The UN Security Council should move with speed to establish a special tribunal that ultimately, should prosecute anyone found to be culpable for war crimes.

In the meantime, the international community should hasten efforts to force both sides into an immediate ceasefire pending renewal of the search for a comprehensive peace settlement.

Any moves towards justice and peace must start on the premise that both Israelis and Palestinians have the right to nationhood and peace within secure borders.

Both of them also have the right to act in self-defence if attacked, but neither has the right to seek obliteration of the other or to rain bombs and missiles on innocent civilians.