Israel: Investigate Unlawful Destruction in Gaza War - Human Rights Watch

Human Rights Watch - Israel should investigate the unlawful destruction of civilian property during the 2009 Gaza hostilities and lift the blockade that hinders residents from rebuilding their homes, Human Rights Watch said in a new report released today.

The 116-page report, "‘I Lost Everything': Israel's Unlawful Destruction of Property in the Gaza Conflict" documents 12 separate cases during Operation Cast Lead in which Israeli forces extensively destroyed civilian property, including homes, factories, farms, and greenhouses, in areas under their control, without any lawful military purpose. Human Rights Watch's investigations, which relied upon physical evidence, satellite imagery, and multiple witness accounts at each site, found no indication of nearby fighting when the destruction occurred.

Israel has claimed that its forces destroyed civilian property only when Palestinian armed groups were fighting from it, or were using it to store weapons, hide tunnels, or advance other military purposes. Israel also claims that many Gazan homes were destroyed by Hamas booby-traps. The evidence in the incidents that Human Rights Watch investigated does not support such claims.

"Almost 16 months after the war, Israel has not held accountable troops who unlawfully destroyed swaths of civilian property in areas under their control," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. "Israel's blockade continues to keep Gazans from rebuilding their homes, meaning that Israel is still punishing Gaza's civilians long after the fighting is over."......

....Human Rights Watch documented the complete destruction of 189 buildings, including 11 factories, 8 warehouses and 170 residential buildings - roughly 5 percent of the total property destroyed in Gaza - leaving at least 971 people homeless.

In the cases investigated in the neighborhoods of Izbt Abd Rabbo, Zeitoun, and Khoza'a, Israeli forces had destroyed virtually every home, factory, and orchard within certain areas, indicating an apparent plan of systematic destruction in these locations. The destroyed industrial establishments include juice and biscuit plants, a flour mill, and seven concrete factories. Human Rights Watch did not determine whether these incidents represent a broader pattern, but Israel should thoroughly investigate these cases - including the lawfulness of any relevant policy decisions - and appropriately punish persons found to have acted unlawfully.

"The evidence shows that, in these cases, Israeli forces gratuitously destroyed people's homes and livelihoods," said Whitson. "If the Israeli government doesn't investigate and punish those responsible, it would be effectively endorsing the suffering that these civilians have endured."

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) lawyers told Human Rights Watch that the IDF is probing many of the cases of property destruction documented in this report. However, these are not criminal investigations by military police, but so-called operational debriefings that do not involve contacting Palestinian witnesses.........    Full story