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| Israeli military opens its own criminal investigations into Gaza war | Israeli military opens its own criminal investigations into Gaza war |
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| JERUSALEM — The Israeli military announced Wednesday that it has launched criminal investigations into two incidents that caused Palestinian civilian casualties during the country’s recent military operation in the Gaza Strip, including the high-profile killing of four children playing soccer on a beach. | JERUSALEM — The Israeli military announced Wednesday that it has launched criminal investigations into two incidents that caused Palestinian civilian casualties during the country’s recent military operation in the Gaza Strip, including the high-profile killing of four children playing soccer on a beach. |
| According to a statement released by the army, that was one of 12 “exceptional” incidents that have been probed by a team of high-ranking officers, none of whom were part of the chain of command during the recent war. The military said it had also opened a criminal investigation into a mortar attack that killed at least 14 people at a school run by the United Nations in Beit Hanoun that was sheltering Palestinians during the war. | |
| Israel’s announcement came after U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the Arabic-language newspaper Al-Hayat that the agency was mulling an investigation into attacks on its facilities and reports that Palestinian militants used the locations to store weapons. That probe would be separate from one underway by the U.N. Human Rights Council, which is investigating possible war crimes by Israel during the fighting in Gaza, which killed more than 2,100 Palestinians. | |
| Israeli military spokesman Lt. Col. Peter Lerner said the army’s fact-finding assessment team has received 44 complaints based on information from human rights organizations, the media and army commanders. He said that in addition to the two cases to be investigated by military police, seven had been closed and three were still pending a decision by the Military Advocate General. | |
| In addition to the killings on the beach and the strike at the Beit Hanoun school, other incidents still being examined include the killing of a woman in Dhaniyeh, who had coordinated her movements with the army; the Israeli military’s alleged use of a Palestinian youth to catch a wanted militant; and the looting of Palestinian homes by Israeli soldiers. | In addition to the killings on the beach and the strike at the Beit Hanoun school, other incidents still being examined include the killing of a woman in Dhaniyeh, who had coordinated her movements with the army; the Israeli military’s alleged use of a Palestinian youth to catch a wanted militant; and the looting of Palestinian homes by Israeli soldiers. |
| Chris Gunness, a spokesman for the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA), which manages many U.N. facilities in Gaza, said he knew little about the Israeli probe and that UNRWA had not been formally notified. | Chris Gunness, a spokesman for the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA), which manages many U.N. facilities in Gaza, said he knew little about the Israeli probe and that UNRWA had not been formally notified. |
| Bill van Esveld, a senior researcher for Human Rights Watch, called the opening of criminal probes a “positive step.” | Bill van Esveld, a senior researcher for Human Rights Watch, called the opening of criminal probes a “positive step.” |
| “However, we just hope it will result in a real credible investigation,” he said. “We have a lot of concerns because the record of internal Israeli army investigations has shown they do not take real accountability for their actions.” | “However, we just hope it will result in a real credible investigation,” he said. “We have a lot of concerns because the record of internal Israeli army investigations has shown they do not take real accountability for their actions.” |
| In a report published this week on the Israeli army’s internal investigations of offenses against Palestinians, two Israeli human rights organizations concluded that the military law enforcement system is “a complete failure.” | In a report published this week on the Israeli army’s internal investigations of offenses against Palestinians, two Israeli human rights organizations concluded that the military law enforcement system is “a complete failure.” |
| “Years of research and monitoring of the military law enforcement system have proven that the mechanisms in place cannot carry out effective investigations as a matter of course, not to mention during wartime,” said Neta Patrick, executive director of Yesh Din, which wrote the report along with the organization B’Tselem. | |
| “Carrying out an investigation in order to prosecute is a legal process that needs to be complete, it cannot be based on assumptions,” said army spokesman Lerner. “We take this very seriously and that is why we have already opened an investigation within two weeks of reaching a cease-fire.” |