RI supports UN resolution condemning Israeli human rights violations

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesia had supported the United Nations Human Rights Commission`s resolution which strongly condemned the Israeli military assaults and human rights violations in the Gaza Strip, a statement said.

The resolution was endorsed in the Commission`s 9th special session in Geneva, Switzerland on Monday (Jan 12) with the support of 33 votes, 13 abstentions and one (Canadian delegation) opposing, a statement issued by the Indonesian permanent representative to the United Nations, WTO and other international organizations in Geneva received by Antara here Tuesday said.

Apart from supporting the resolution, Indonesia was also the main sponsor of the draft resolution which was filed last Friday.

Previously, Indonesia condemned the violation of human rights by Israel in the Gaza Strip and asked the international community to urge Israel to respect international and human rights laws.

The resolution, in addition to condemning Israel, also urged the Zionist country to immediately stop its military attacks in all its occupied territories in Palestine, causing various heavy human right violations against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which had killed more than 900 people and 4,000 injured, including children and women.

The UN resolution also asked Israel to stop its rocket attacks on Palestine.

The statement said, the resolution also urged Israel to stop using civilians and medical facilities as targets of its military attacks, open access for humanitarian relief aid and pave the way for the media to enter the conflicting areas.

Israel was also urged to withdraw all of its troops from the Gaza Strip, end its occupation of Palestinian land and respect its commitment to the peace process particularly in efforts to setting up a sovereign Palestine with East Jerussalem as its capital city.

Other important points in the resolution include the immediate setting up of an international independent fact finding mission to investigate the human right violations committed by Israel against Palestinian people.

In the meantime, the Indonesian delegation stated that the international community could not keep quiet with regard to the escalation of the human rights violations and humanitarian crisis facing the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip.

UN watchdog condemns war on Gaza

A resolution condemning Israel's military offensive in Gaza has been adopted by the UN Human Rights Council.

The non-binding resolution, approved in Geneva on Monday, said Israel's operation had "resulted in massive violations of human rights of the Palestinian people".

More than 900 Palestinians have died during the fighting, many of them women and children, and a further 4,100 have been wounded.

At least 25,000 have been displaced due to the ongoing bombardment, but are unable to flee the overcrowded territory as crossing points remain closed.

The resolution, drafted by Arab, Asian and African countries, called for an international mission to be sent immediately to the Gaza Strip to investigate Israel's actions.

It also called for an immediate end to the "launching of the crude rockets against Israeli civilians" by the Palestinian factions.
Israel launched its operation on December 27 after a ceasefire with Hamas ended a week earlier, stating its objective was to target the Palestinian faction's infrastructure and bring an end to the firing of homemade rockets into southern Israel.

'Fairytale world'

Fewer states than expected supported the resolution, which passed by 33 votes to one, with 13 abstentions. The US, not a member of the council, took no part in the debate.

Israel dismissed it as one-sided and reflecting the "fairytale world" of the 47-member council.

The text of the document said the council "strongly condemns the ongoing Israeli military operations ... which have resulted in massive violations of human rights of the Palestinian people and systematic destruction of the Palestinian infrastructure".

The resolution was opposed by Canada while European countries, Japan and South Korea abstained.

The resolution was backed by, among others, Russia, China, Argentina and Brazil.

During a debate on the resolution, Pakistan, speaking for the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), denounced what it called Israel's "unrestrained use of force, killing of innocent civilians" and violation of UN havens.

At least 40 people died last Tuesday when the UN-run school they were sheltering in was hit by Israeli fire.

'Massive violations'

All European Union countries abstained and Canada voted against the resolution.

Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, told Al Jazeera: "In the end they [the UN] passed the resolution, it was not unanimous. I would not say it was that heated, at the end of the day there were still differences of opinion.
"Many states praised the Palestinian delegation for the flexibility they had shown in the negotiations, but they could not quite reach a consensus."

Speaking in the Gaza Strip, John Ging, head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) operations in Gaza, repeated his call for an immediate end to the fighting.

"I say now, to all politicians, here in Israel and internationally, you have an obligation to the ordinary people in the name of humanity and all that is civilised, we need to stop this now. Those who help will never be forgotten.

"Israel is responsible for its own actions and it is very clear to us that there are a lot of actions in this conflict that will need to be fully investigated independently and internationally.

"Those who have been killed and injured, those who are innocent, deserve accountability."

Peter Splinter, Amnesty International's representative at the United Nations in Geneva, backed the call for an investigation, saying "there must be a full accountability for war crimes".

"Evidence of war crimes is presenting itself each day," he told Al Jazeera.

Boutros Boutros-Ghali, a former UN secretary-general, added his perspective on the situation, saying the assault on Gaza "is a present the Israelis gave to the fundamentalists".

"It will reinforce extremists, fundamentalists, all over Arab countries and even inside Israel," he said.

Boutros-Ghali was headed the UN from 1992 to 1997.

Source: Al Jazeera and agencies