CAIRO: Human Rights Watch (HRW) called on governments and the United Nations to put more pressure on Israel and Hamas to conduct genuine and independent investigations into war crimes committed during the Israeli offensive on Gaza from December 2008-January 2009. In a statement released Tuesday, HRW said the investigations conducted by the Israeli military have brought “some results over the past 18 months but, fall far short of addressing the widespread and serious allegations of unlawful conduct during the fighting”. Hamas, on the other hand, has not announced any serious investigation, the US-based NGO said. “International pressure for investigations has pushed Israel, if not Hamas, to take some steps, but there can be no let-up,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “The victims on all sides deserve justice.” According to the statement, Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA) submitted thier report to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Hamas has also prepared a report, but, like the PA, its findings have not been made public. “Secretary-General Ban should candidly assess the investigations by both sides and not just passively transmit the reports to the General Assembly,” Whitson said. HRW released last April, a report titled “Turning a Blind Eye, Impunity for Laws-of-War Violations during the Gaza War”, relating how both Israel and Hamas had investigated the crimes in Gaza. The report had denounced both sides for not seriously investigating the issue and bringing the war criminals to justice.
