Israel set to challenge Goldstone Gaza report , page 1

Israel set to challenge Goldstone Gaza report

www.haaretz.com

Israel was set to submit its rebuttal on Thursday to a United Nations reports accusing it of having committed war crimes in Gaza last winter. Though the Israeli response has been kept under wraps, it is expected to list the essential flaws in the report and explain why the report is biased against Israel and tainted with many problems.

Officers involved in writing the rebuttal gave the New York Times some details.

One concerned the destruction of Gaza's sole flour mill, the New York Times reported on Saturday. In its rebuttal, Israel will apparently offer photographic proof contradicting the Goldstone report allegation that the Bader flour mill "was hit by an airstrike, possibly by an F-16." Israeli investigators say they can prove the mill was accidentally hit by artillery during the course of a firefight with Hamas militiamen, the paper reported.

The distinction is significant, the paper continued, since the UN report asserts that "the destruction of the mill was carried out for the purpose of denying sustenance to the civilian population," an explicit war crime.

Another detail disclosed to the New York Times concerns the destruction of a wastewater plant, which led to a massive flooding of raw sewage. The Goldstone report argues that Israel deliberately hit the plant, while Israel denies any connection to the incident and suggests the plant may have been destroyed by Hamas explosives.

It would be interesting to see this unfold. Hopefully, we will find out soon what Israel has responded.

I don't think much will come of it though as USA, under influence from Israel would be working hard to bury this matter by pressuring UN. Similarly, France and Germany will oppose any ruling against Israel.

www.haaretz.com
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