US Helped Israel Contain UN Gaza War Probes

By Daily Star Staff
Agence France Press
April 20, 2011 12:00 AM
(Last updated: April 20, 2011 12:56 AM)
Courtesy Of "The Daily Star"



WASHINGTON: The U.S. worked behind the scenes to help Israel contain U.N. probes into possible war crimes committed during the 2008-09 Gaza war, Foreign Policy reported Tuesday.

The online foreign affairs magazine cited exclusive WikiLeaks cables detailing moves by the U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Susan Rice to prevent a more thorough U.N. investigation of alleged abuses during the conflict.

Some 1,400 Palestinians and 13 Israelis were killed in the three-week-long Israeli offensive in December 2008 and January 2009, which Israel said was aimed at halting Palestinian rocket attacks.

According to one cable, Rice spoke with U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon three times on May 4, 2009, to urge him to remove recommendations for a wider probe from a board of inquiry report into attacks on U.N. sites in Gaza.

Rice “underscored the importance of having a strong cover letter that made clear that no further action was needed and would close out this issue,” the U.S. diplomatic cable said.

Ban said his staff was working with the Israeli delegation and “called her after the letter had been finalized to report that he believed they had arrived at a satisfactory cover letter.”

Later that year Israel and the United States pushed back against a similar effort to investigate the war by the U.N. Human Rights Council, which appointed a team led by the South African jurist Richard Goldstone.

The release of the Goldstone probe’s report coincided with U.S. efforts to revive Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, and in another cable Rice linked the two during a meeting with Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon.

She urged him to “help us help them with progress on the peace process, saying that the report can be more easily managed if there is progress.”

The Goldstone report said there was evidence that both Israel and Palestinian militant groups had committed war crimes and possible crimes against humanity, urging independent probes on both sides.

Two weeks ago, Goldstone stepped back from the report, saying new information about Israel’s military actions led him to believe he had erred in concluding that Israel targeted civilians during the 22-day conflict.

In a related development, the Palestine Liberation Organization denounced Tuesday a U.S. Congress bill demanding the U.N. cancel the Goldstone report, WAFA news agency said.

The PLO’s foreign relations department said it considers that the U.S. position encourages Israeli settlements and aggression against Palestinian civilians, according to the agency.

The PLO said the bill legitimizes Israeli killing of Palestinian civilians under U.S. cover, WAFA said.

It urged U.S. President Barack Obama not to approve the bill due to its clear pro-Israel stance, the agency added. The PLO said the bill violates international law and neglects Palestinian rights, WAFA said.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Daily Star on April 20, 2011, on page 10.