GENEVA, (Reuters) – South African judge Richard Goldstone will lead a United Nations investigation into alleged war crimes committed by Israeli forces and Palestinian militants in Gaza, the U.N. Human Rights Council said yesterday.The four-member team, which also involves experts from Pakistan, Britain, and Ireland, hopes to start its fact-finding work in the region within weeks, according to a U.N. statement. Goldstone, a former war crimes prosecutor, said he would review conduct by both sides in Israel’s 22-day offensive in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.
“It is in the interest of all Palestinians and Israelis that the allegations of war crimes and serious human rights violations related to the recent conflict on all sides be investigated,” he said in the statement. According to a Palestinian rights group, 1,417 people including 926 civilians were killed in the December-January conflict. Thirteen Israelis were killed.
Israel has accused Hamas fighters in Gaza of using civilians as human shields during the fighting. Rights groups have also criticised Hamas for firing rockets at civilian targets in southern Israel.
