Amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Hamas military group, a top official of the United Nations said that both factions may be guilty of committing grave violations of humanitarian principles. Voice of America quoted UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, who has stated that the factions' targeting of civilian infrastructure or its use for military purposes is a clear violation of international humanitarian law and international human rights law.
"Locating rockets in schools and hospitals or even launching these rockets from densely populated areas are violations of international humanitarian law. But, it does not absolve the other party, that is Israel, from not itself observing its obligations under international humanitarian law," she said.
Moreover, Pillay said that Israel itself has obligations towards the people in Gaza given the fact that it is an occupying power. Although she has somewhat absolved to a degree that Israel launched its military offensive to protect its people, he emphasized that the Israeli government must also extend medical care, and protection of the Gaza people's right to housing, food and clean water. Pillay also did not mince words against Hamas, and condemns their use of the UN's facilities that houses thousands of Palestinians as their weapons repository and places to launch their rockets against Israel.
Pillay has stopped short of discussing whether UN has made legal steps to hold the Israeli government and/or the Hamas accountable for such acts.
On Thursday, Pillars also told reporters present in Geneva that the acts seen in the Gaza conflict mirror that of the acts done during the Gaza war in 2009, the Huffington Post reported. The UN had concluded then that Israel tageted civilians deliberately and might have committed war crimes.
Now on its 24th day, the Gaza conflict has killed around 1,300 Palestinians, mostly civilians, and 59 Israelis, mainly soldiers.
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