Gaza conflict: Fresh call for accountability as UN's five-month evaluation period expires

Amnesty International has reiterated its call for accountability for alleged violations of international humanitarian and human rights law committed during the conflict in Gaza and southern Israel in 2008-9.

The call comes as a five-month period of evaluation set by the United Nations expires today (26 July).

In February the UN General Assembly passed a resolution requesting that the Secretary General Ban Ki-moon evaluate whether all parties to the conflict had met their obligations to undertake “independent, credible” investigations into grave violations of international law, including war crimes and possible crimes against humanity during the conflict.

Amnesty International said:

'A year and a half after the conflict in Gaza and southern Israel ended, the victims have yet to obtain justice, truth or full reparations; the perpetrators on both sides have yet to be held to account.

'The international community must not fail in its duty to ensure that these objectives are achieved if the parties to the conflict show that they are unable or unwilling to achieve them.'

Amnesty stressed that if the respective parties fail to conduct investigations that meet international law and standards, then the international community will need to assume the responsibility to ensure justice, truth and full reparations to the victims.  If so, one means to achieve this would be for the UN Security Council to refer the situation to the International Criminal Court for investigation. 

Amnesty continues to be concerned about the limited extent of the domestic investigations. The organisation is also concerned that neither of the parties have demonstrated a genuine commitment to ensure that if those investigations produce sufficient admissible evidence, each suspect will be prosecuted in a fair trial without the possibility of the death penalty and that full reparations will be provided to the victims.

• Read more on the background of investigations into the Gaza conflict