Norway to investigate human rights abuses in Gaza

stoere_133px_hvitThe Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Store has advised that Norway will be actively following up on a UN Human Rights Council report, which came after a fact-finding mission during the recent Gaza conflict. The report claims human rights and humanitarian law violations. According to the Norway Post, Gahr Store has deemed the allegations very serious.

“The extensive work carried out by the UN Fact-Finding Mission must now be actively followed up. The report contains very serious allegations. As a member of the UN Human Rights Council, Norway will as a first step seek to ensure that the report is dealt with as thoroughly as possible by the Human Rights Council,” he said in response to the report.

The independent fact-finding mission for the UN Human Rights Council was led by South Africa’s Justice Richard Goldstone, and investigated the alleged violations of both humanitarian laws and human rights by Israel during the conflict. The mission stated that there was sufficient evidence to suggest Israeli actions constituted war crimes and even crimes against humanity.

The report also found that Palestinian armed factions may have committed war crimes and crimes against humanity with their continued launching of mortar and rocket propelled grenades across the border into southern Israel.

Mr Store stressed that Norway was fully behind bringing to justice those who violate humanitarian law. “I note that the Justice Goldstone’s Fact-Finding Mission has considered the conduct of both parties to the conflict. Norway has earlier underlined the need for an independent investigation of the alleged violations of international humanitarian law during the operations in Gaza earlier this year,” said the Norwegian minister.

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