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Goldstone Mission Another Unfair UN Fact-Finding Farce

[Jerusalem Post] Alan Baker - Accusations of war crimes and human rights violations by Israel during the recent hostilities in Gaza seem to be developing into a fixation among those who await the opportunity to bash Israel. The fact that there exists a clear double standard, and that Israel is singled out for special treatment, is regrettably a given factor in the international reality in which we live. Faced with the UN Human Rights Council's appointment of South African Prof. Richard Goldstone to head an international fact-finding mission, the question once again arises whether Israel should agree to cooperate with Goldstone and his mission. However, the impartiality of the mission and its independence, as well as the motivations behind it, are far from genuine. The mandate emanates from a UN Human Rights Council resolution dated January 12 on the grave violations of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, adopted by 33 votes in favor, one (Canada) against and 13 abstentions (European countries). Israel formally rejected this resolution as one-sided, adopted by a body dominated by a majority of Muslim and non-aligned countries and without the support of the Western and democratic states, and ignoring the terrorism against Israel and the daily rocket and mortar attacks by Hamas and other terrorist organizations from Gaza. Clearly, the UN or any other body presuming to investigate Israel's actions must come with clean hands. It cannot base itself on a questionable mandate, generated for hostile political purposes that dictate in advance the conclusion of the mission. The writer is former legal adviser to the Israeli Foreign Ministry and ambassador to Canada.
2009-04-13 06:00:00
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