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These are a few extracts from the fact finding mission of the Geneva-based Human Rights Council on the Israeli attack on the aid flotilla to Gaza.
The Israeli military was guilty of "an unacceptable level of brutality" and deployed "totally unnecessary and incredible violence" in the raid last May on a humanitarian assistance flotilla off the coast of Gaza that killed nine people.
"The conduct of the Israeli military and other personnel towards the flotilla passengers was not only disproportionate but demonstrated levels of totally unnecessary and incredible violence," the inquiry concluded. "It betrayed an unacceptable level of brutality. Such conduct cannot be justified or condoned on security or any other grounds."
The HRC also said this about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza: "The preponderance of evidence is too overwhelming to come to a contrary opinion," the report said. "Any denial that this is so cannot be sustained... For this reason alone, the blockade is unlawful."
Israel predictably said that the HRC was biased.
Meanwhile in Jerusalem a Palestinian man, Samer Serhan, was shot dead by a private security guard. Israeli Police said that Palestinians blocked the road forcing the security guard to fire in the air to defend himself. The security guard was released after questioning. The dead man was shot twice in the stomach which kind of refutes the claim that the security guard shot in the air.
Whether they are the four hundred plus children killed in a fortnight or the scores of protestors shot in the head or bulldozed isn’t it amazing that Israelis are ‘only’ ever ‘defending’ themselves and that no one is ever brought to justice for the countless deaths of Palestinians and foreign aid workers / protestors?
Let’s hope that Mr Abbas and Mr Netanyahu can bring justice for the Palestinians as Mr Obama stated was possible today.