U.N. urged to discuss Hezbollah offenses

[cec]

U.N. urged to discuss Hezbollah offenses
By ELIANE ENGELER
Associated Press Writer
GENEVA (AP) -- The U.N.'s human rights chief told an emergency United Nations session on the Israeli invasion of Lebanon that delegates must also consider offenses by Hezbollah.
Muslim countries that called the session of the new U.N. Human Rights Council have introduced a harshly worded draft resolution blaming Israel for the bloodshed without mentioning Hezbollah. It asks the council to consider "gross human rights violations by Israel."
But Louise Arbour, the U.N.'s high commissioner for human rights, told the gathering that there have been violations by both sides.
"Israeli attacks affecting civilians continue unabated," she said. "Also unrelenting is Hezbollah's indiscriminate shelling of densely populated centers in northern Israel, which has brought death and destruction.
"There have also been repeated allegations of Hezbollah's systematic use of civilians as human shields," she said.
The session was called after 16 countries - more than the requisite one-third of the 47-member council - backed Tunisia's request for it on behalf of the Organization of the Islamic Conference. The council has no powers to punish countries beyond public condemnation.
In a similar session on July 6, the rights council voted 29-11 to deplore Israel's military operations in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Fighting in Lebanon began July 12 after Hezbollah guerrillas based in southern Lebanon kidnapped two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border raid. Israel responded with air attacks and later a ground offensive. Hezbollah has fired thousands of rockets into northern Israel.
In Friday's meeting, the Islamic conference kept its focus only on Israel, with Pakistan Ambassador Masood Khan calling the situation in Lebanon "appalling."
Israel Ambassador Itzhak Levanon said both Israeli and Lebanese civilians have suffered from the conflict, but he said some council members were ignoring Hezbollah's "vicious campaign of terror."
He called for the kidnapped Israeli soldiers to be released unconditionally and for Hezbollah to end the threat to residents of northern Israel.
"The simple fact of how this crisis started seems to have evaded the memory of many in the council," Levanon said.
International efforts to agree on a plan for trying to end the fighting have so far failed. U.N. humanitarian chief Jan Egeland told The Associated Press on Friday that the anger on all sides in the Middle East is the greatest he has seen in two decades of trying to help the troubled region.
"I've never seen nations as polarized as during this recent visit," said Egeland, who was in Lebanon, Israel and the Gaza strip at the end of July.
Tunisia's statement says the council should consider Israel's July 30 airstrike on the Lebanese town of Qana, which killed 28 people, as well as "countrywide targeting of innocent civilians and destruction of vital civilian infrastructure."
European diplomats have been trying to negotiate with the Islamic council to put more balance into the proposed resolution, which they considered one-sided, but it is unclear whether the bloc is willing to compromise. The session was scheduled to last one day, but could carry over to next week.
The Islamic council's draft resolution calls for the urgent dispatch of a high-level commission of inquiry to investigate the "systematic targeting and killings of civilians by Israel in Lebanon; to examine the types of weapons used by Israel and their conformity with the international law; to assess the extent and deadly impact of Israeli attacks on human life, property, critical infrastructure and the environment."


http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories...08-11-07-55-50

[Woodmonkey]

Originally Posted by cec

But Louise Arbour, the U.N.'s high commissioner for human rights, told the gathering that there have been violations by both sides.
"Israeli attacks affecting civilians continue unabated," she said. "Also unrelenting is Hezbollah's indiscriminate shelling of densely populated centers in northern Israel, which has brought death and destruction.
"There have also been repeated allegations of Hezbollah's systematic use of civilians as human shields," she said.

< snip >

"The simple fact of how this crisis started seems to have evaded the memory of many in the council," Levanon said.

Any discussion that doesn't include this would be a sham and I hope this Arbour sticks to her guns and isn't overruled by Annan.

The Muslim countries, again, don't see kidnapping, using human shields and killing Jews as wrong.