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Friday, September 01, 2006

UN to Israel: Guilty until proven innocent

Today the UN named a panel to investigate Israel for human rights abuses in Lebanon. But you need to check out the resolution of the UN "Human Rights Council" commission on Lebanon that started this panel to begin with:
[T]he Human Rights Council, among other things, strongly condemns the grave Israeli violations of human rights and breaches of international humanitarian law in Lebanon; also condemns massive bombardments of Lebanese civilian populations, especially the massacres in Qana, Marwaheen, Al Duweir, Al Bayadah, Al Qaa, Chiyah, Ghazieh and other towns of Lebanon and the displacement of one million civilians; further condemns the Israeli bombardment of vital civilian infrastructure resulting in extensive destruction and heavy damage to public and private properties; further condemns the Israeli bombardment of vital civilian infrastructure; calls upon Israel to observe the principle of proportionality and refrain from launching any attack that may be expected to cause incidental loss of civilian life; calls upon Israel to abide immediately and scrupulously by its obligations under human rights law, in particular the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and urges all concerned parties to respect the rules of international humanitarian law, to refrain from violence against the civilian population and to treat under all circumstances all detained combatants and civilians in accordance with the Geneva Conventions; and calls upon Israel to immediately stop military operations against the civilian population and civilian objects resulting in death and destruction and serious violations of human rights.

So far, this is a typical one-sided anti-Israel resolution. As can be expected from the joke that is the UN, the word "Hezbollah" is not mentioned in this resolution (although the press release contains what may be a Freudian slip: Lebanon told the meeting that the Government of Lebanon did it endorse the operations carried out by Hezbollah." Presumably they meant "didn't endorse.")

Also, notice that this Council goes way beyond the Geneva Conventions in saying that Israel, and only Israel, may never attack any other country if there is the slightest chance that an innocent person may be killed even accidentally. Even for the UN, this is breathtakingly bigoted.

But look at how this august Council created the panel announced today:
The Council also decides to urgently establish and immediately dispatch a high-level inquiry commission comprising eminent experts of human rights law and international humanitarian law, including the possibility of inviting the relevant special procedures to be nominated to the commission to, among other things: investigate the systematic targeting and killings of civilians by Israel; examine the types of weapons used by Israel and their conformity with international law; and assess the extent and deadly impact of Israeli attacks on human life, property, critical infrastructure and environment...
In other words, "We know that Israel (and Israel alone) is guilty of human rights abuses, genocide, ethnic cleansing, pedophilia, blasphemy, violating the entire Code of Hammurabi and eating non-Halal foods. Now we will launch a full investigation to see exactly how guilty you are."

And this is the organization that promises that it can be objective in its expanded role in Lebanon.

UPDATE: Maybe the UN really does believe that no one is allowed to defend themselves. (Hat tip Soccer Dad.)