Israel must be prosecuted for flagrant war crimes, writes Ibrahim Nafie Israel has committed a crime against humanity. A warplane has bombed a residential building in Qana, killing over 55 people and wounding many more. Most of the victims were women and children. Dozens of children were extracted lifeless from under the rubble. In angry reaction, Lebanese crowds stormed the UN headquarters in Beirut. What happened in Qana was undoubtedly a crime of war. The building that was bombed was a residential building and the victims were all civilians. The building couldn't have been hit by mistake. The bombing must have been intentional. The incident calls for a neutral international investigation and for a trial of the criminals who ordered the bombing. Qana meets tragedy not for the first time. In 1996, Israeli warplanes bombed a UN camp in the same town, killing more than 100 civilians. What has happened in Qana was a crime of war in the true sense of the word. Lebanon has evidence for it. And Arab organisations, including Arabs Against Discrimination (AAD), are fully documenting such crimes. The next step would be to file lawsuits in international courts, including the International Criminal Court. The most urgent task right now is for the UN Security Council to pass an immediate resolution calling for a ceasefire in Lebanon. This is not the time to state prior conditions and elaborate on the intricacies of Resolution 1559. These all are details that can be sorted out through a Lebanese-Arab-international consensus. Major powers, especially the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, should meet their responsibilities and table a draft resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire. Such action must not slow down the diplomatic efforts France and other countries are exerting with regard to a full settlement of the crisis. First, a ceasefire needs to be established unconditionally, and then Resolution 1559 must be implemented, a step that should involve Israel's withdrawal from the Shabaa Farms area. Most world nations have denounced the massacre of innocent Lebanese civilians in Qana. Many have denounced the crime and called for an international investigation. This wasn't the first time Israel committed crimes of war against unarmed civilians and prisoners of war. Therefore, the Arabs must take legal action; preferably while the Qana crime is still alive in our collective memory. The least the Arabs could do is ask the Arab League to collect evidence, put together a legal dossier, and commission Arab and international lawyers to take action. This can be done in cooperation with the Arab Lawyers' Federation. A lawsuit against Israel and its political and military leadership must be filed. Arab governments and agencies should prepare the case and commission a professional team to pursue legal action. Words of condemnation are not enough. Again, the AAD -- in which I serve as chairman -- has a full dossier on Israeli crimes of war. We have documents and testimonies, facts and figures. The AAD has been documenting Israel's crimes on a regular basis and is willing to cooperate with any Arab agency in taking legal action against Israeli war criminals. I call on the Arab League, the Arab Lawyers' Federation, and other competent agencies to do something about Qana and earlier crimes. We have the documents and the evidence. So let's put together a professional legal team to present the case.
