A RETIRED Irish colonel who participated in the UN investigation into alleged war crimes committed during the conflict in Gaza last winter has expressed disappointment that action on the resulting report has been deferred until next year.
The UN Human Rights Council had been due to vote this week on a resolution that would have condemned Israel’s failure to co-operate with the inquiry and forwarded the report to the Security Council. But it was postponed until March following US pressure. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has been sharply criticised at home for agreeing to the deferment.
Col Desmond Travers was a member of the fact-finding team led by South African judge Richard Goldstone. Their 575-page report accused Israel of using disproportionate force and deliberately harming civilians during its three-week offensive on Gaza in January, and alleged Hamas had also committed war crimes by firing rockets into Israel. It called on the UN Security Council to refer the allegations to the International Criminal Court (ICC) if either side failed to investigate and prosecute suspects.
“We were extremely disappointed . . [the deferral] came as a great shock to us,” Col Travers told
The Irish Times
yesterday. “Justice deferred is justice denied.” Discussing the report during a meeting of the Oireachtas committee on foreign affairs, Col Travers stressed the need for “an end to impunity”.
“You cannot have a peace process unless you acknowledge war crimes,” he added.
The colonel drew attention to weapons and munitions used by Israel during the conflict, including white phosphorous,
flechettes
– finned darts, thousands of which are packed into tank shells and released at high speed – and heavy metal shrapnel: “I recommend those weapons andmunitions mentioned in the report should now be examined by independent bodies in order to determine their appropriateness as weapons even in theatres of war.”
He also stressed the damage to Gaza’s soil, sewage, air and water systems should be addressed immediately. “This environmental damage is now at crisis point, and if not addressed by the international community as a matter of urgency, will have serious effects on the quality of life of [Gaza’s] citizens – especially that of its children.” He recommended the monitoring of those injured by heavy metal shrapnel for complications arising from the carcinogenic effects of such metals.
Col Travers said the UN team advised the blockade on Gaza be lifted “in its entirety” to allow reconstruction of the territory following January’s bombardment. Tens of thousands of Gazans are living in squalid conditions, many in homes without doors or windows, as winter approaches. Col Travers paid tribute to the work of fellow Irishman John Ging, UNRWA’s director of operations in Gaza, and said the expertise provided by Lieut-Col Raymond Lane, of the Irish Defence Forces’ school of ordnance, was instrumental in assessing the impact of munitions used during the conflict.