U.S. urges Israel to probe Gaza crimes to boost peace

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"The United States called on its close ally Israel on Tuesday to conduct credible investigations into allegations of war crimes committed by its forces in Gaza, saying it would help the Middle East peace process.

Michael Posner, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State, said that Hamas leaders also had a responsibility to investigate crimes and to end what he called its targeting of civilians and use of Palestinian civilians as human shields in the strip.

The U.N. Human Rights Council was holding a one-day debate on a recent report by Richard Goldstone, a South African jurist and former U.N. war crimes prosecutor.

His panel found the Israeli army and Palestinian militants committed war crimes and possibly crimes against humanity during their December-January war. Israel did not cooperate with the U.N. inquiry and has rejected the report as biased.

"We encourage Israel to utilize appropriate domestic (judicial) review and meaningful accountability mechanisms to investigate and follow-up on credible allegations," Posner said in a speech to the Geneva forum."

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[Scurrilous]

1. War Crimes Impunity Impedes Mideast Peace - Goldstone

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"A lack of accountability for war crimes committed in the Middle East has reached "crisis point," undermining any hope for peace in the region, a United Nations human rights investigator charged on Tuesday.

Richard Goldstone, a former U.N. war crimes prosecutor who led a U.N. inquiry into the Gaza conflict, called on Israeli and Hamas authorities to conduct open and credible investigations into atrocities during their December-January war in the strip.

"A culture of impunity in the region has existed for too long," Goldstone told the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva.

"The lack of accountability for war crimes and possible war crimes against humanity has reached a crisis point; the ongoing lack of justice is undermining any hope for a successful peace process and reinforcing an environment that fosters violence."

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