Israel's War on Lebanon: Probe war crimes

[IndianaGreen]

Israel's War on Lebanon: Probe war crimes

By Morning Star
8-21-06, 9:02 am

It seems difficult to believe now that it was US President Ronald Reagan who imposed a pause on exports of cluster munitions to Israel in 1982 because of the international outcry over Tel Aviv's disregard of the toll of civilian casualties that their indiscriminate use had caused during its invasion of Lebanon.

The Bush administration has no such qualms over Israel's war crimes in Lebanon this time round.

It is vital that there should be an independent international inquiry into claims that Israel has been experimenting with other anti-personnel weapons in both Lebanon and Palestine.

The possible use of thermobaric weapons, white phosphorus or missiles capable of spraying near-molten copper that causes deep tissue wounds without leaving bomb fragments must be investigated.

This is not simply a humanitarian mission, vital though that is at a time when US and British government pressure on other governments allowed Israel to resist calls for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire and to rain death and destruction down on Lebanon for weeks.

http://www.politicalaffairs.net/article/articleview/3955/1/205/

[Englander]

1. Government studies options to sue Israel for war crimes

By Leila Hatoum
Daily Star staff
Tuesday, August 22, 2006

BEIRUT: The Lebanese state has started to study the possible legal procedures to sue Israel and its political and military leaders within the international legal arena for crimes committed by Israel against Lebanon. Justice Minister Charles Rizk headed a meeting with some of Lebanon's top magistrates and legal experts Monday. A source at the Justice Ministry said the three-hour session dealt with "the Israeli aggression file, which includes war crimes and crimes against humanity, and to look for the best possible ways to legally pursue Israel and force it to pay compensations."

The meeting "covered all the legal and technical aspects of the file, including gathering the evidence, determining the party which has the legal jurisdiction to look into the case and highlighting the legal texts which rule the case and the international legal assistance" that Lebanon can hire, said Rizk.

He added that a "mini-legal committee has been formed to follow up the matter," adding that this committee "will convene next Monday."

"We are sure of what we are doing and we continue to pursue the case against Israelis for the dozens of massacres and crimes they have committed against us," Rizk said.

The 34-day Israeli offensive against Lebanon resulted in the death of over 1,000 Lebanese civilians, the wounding of more than 3,500 civilians and the displacement of almost a million people, according to UN and official Lebanese numbers.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=74927

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