AN INTERNAL Israeli investigation into the Gaza war, released yesterday, has found "no violations" of international law.
Israel launched its three-week offensive on 27 December to try to halt daily rocket attacks from Gaza that had landed in southern Israel for years. The use of air and ground power against Gaza's Islamic Hamas rulers was unprecedented in Israel's war
against Palestinian militants.
Palestinians claim more than 1,400 Gazans were killed, including 926 civilians. Israel says 1,166 Palestinians were killed, including 709 Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants.
The military conducted five investigations into some of its most controversial actions during the war, including attacks on and near United Nations facilities, shooting at medical workers, the widespread demolition of Palestinian homes, and the use in densely-populated Gaza of white phosphorus, a chemical agent that causes horrific burns.
The investigations uncovered "a very small number of incidents" in which intelligence or operational errors took place during the fighting, the military said. One included an airstrike that killed 21 members of the same family.
"These unfortunate incidents were unavoidable and occur in all combat situations," the military concluded. Deputy chief of staff Major General Dan Harel said the military maintained "a high professional and ethical level" while facing an enemy that took cover among civilians.
However, rights activists were outraged. "This statement is an insult to the civilians in Gaza who needlessly died and an embarrassment to (Israel Defence Forces] members who take military justice seriously," Human Rights Watch said in a statement from New York.
