Hamas on Friday welcomed the United Nations Human Rights Council decision to endorse a Gaza report that accused Israel of committing war crimes, saying that the organization hoped the vote would lead to “the beginning of the prosecution of the leaders of the occupation.”
“The Palestinian government welcomes the endorsement on the Goldstone report and thanks the friendly countries which voted in favor of the report,” Hamas spokesman Taher al-Nono said.
Nabil Abu Rudeinah, a spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, added that what was needed was a follow-up on implementation of the recommandations in the report, “to protect the Palestinian people from Israeli aggression.”
“The most important thing now is to continue with steps to make sure that the Zionist criminals are brought to trial,” said another Hamas spokesman, Sami Abu Zuhri.
During the UN Human Rights Council session Friday, several countries condemned Israel over the findings stated in the 575-page long report which accuses Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas of war crimes during Israel’s December-January Gaza offensive.
The Palestinian UN delegate said during the session that “Israel denies Palestinians basic human rights and this issue cannot be compromised.”
Israel’s Foreign Ministry issued an official response to the UN vote, saying that “Israel rejects the unjust decision by the Human Rights Council in Geneva.”
“Israel will continue to exercise its right to self defense and to preserve the security of its citizens,” the ministry statement continued. “However, Israel believes that the decision harms efforts to protect human rights in accordance with international law and hinders efforts to promote the peace process as well as encouraging terror organizations around the world.”
Jerusalem sources maintain that there a marked improvement can be seen in Friday’s UN Human Rights Council, in comparison to the initial vote to establish the Goldstone commission, which investigated Israel’s and Hamas’ conduct during the war, and subsequently compiled the damning report.
“However,” the ministry statement said, “Israel still feels that the UNHRC decision was one-sided.”
“Israel thanks the countries that supported our position, and those who, with their vote, voiced their opposition to the unjust decision which ignores the murderous Hamas attacks against Israeli citizens,” the statement continued. “The decision ignores the fact that the Israel Defense Forces took unprecedented measures to avoid harming innocent civilians, and the fact that terror organizations used civilians as human shields in Gaza.”
Former foreign minister and opposition leader Tzipi Livni also issued a response to the vote, saying that “since the inception of the Human Rights Council, it has viewed Israel in a distorted fashion, just as the report itself does. Today’s vote was political and cynical. Israel will continue to do the right thing and to protect its citizens, and will continue the international battle against the report to ensure the legal protection of IDF officers, wherever they may be.”
Israeli Arab MK Ahmed Tibi accepted the council’s decision and said that the adoption of the report’s findings was an important ethical and legal decision.
“It is wrong to leave an entire population without the protection of the UN and the international community, who have now regained their honor,” Tibi said.
Shas Chairman Eli Yishai condemned the UN council’s decision calling it an anti-Israel decision based on an anti-Israel report.
