Zeitoun deaths 'may be war crimes'

Occupied Jerusalem: The United Nations said Israel should be investigated for war crimes after it shelled a house full of Palestinian civilians, killing dozens.

Navi Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the attack on members of the extended Samouni family in the Gazan town of Zeitoun "appears to have all the elements of war crimes".

Her remarks came after the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) accused Israel of breaking the rules of war by failing to help the wounded in the incident.

Violations

According to the ICRC, four infant children were found too weak to stand after clinging for 48 hours to what ambulance crews said were the bodies of their mothers, while Israeli soldiers were a short distance away. Under the rules of war, soldiers have an obligation to treat survivors.

Speaking to an emergency session of the UN Human Rights Council, Pillay said Palestinian fighters firing rockets into Israel was "unacceptable" but that did not justify alleged abuses by the Israeli army.

She said conditions endured by the 1.5 million people of Gaza "constitute egregious violations of human rights." She added: "Accountability must be ensured for violations of international law."

"As a first step, credible, independent and transparent investigations must be carried out to identify violations and establish responsibilities".

"I remind this council that violations of international humanitarian law may constitute war crimes for which individual criminal responsibility may be invoked."

Israel denies that there is a humanitarian crisis in Gaza and says it is working with international agencies and doing everything possible to reduce civilian casualties.

More than 100 Palestinian children have been killed since Israel launched operation Cast Lead two weeks ago.

The ICRC has demanded more access to Zeitoun to establish the death toll. With Israeli forces still in the area and unwilling to let ambulance crews in, apart from for a short time on Wednesday, it is not possible to say how many members of the Samouni clan died. Some survivors said 30 were killed, others suggest it might be 70.

The bloodshed happened after Israel launched its ground invasion last Saturday. Israeli troops went house to house detaining men of fighting age and gathering the remaining people, mostly women and children, in a few houses.

Up to 110 members of the extended Samouni clan were put into one building without water, heating or food. At dawn on Monday, the building was shelled repeatedly by Israeli forces.

Meysa Samouni, 19, said: "When the missile struck, I lay down with my daughter under me. Everything filled up with smoke and dust, and I heard screams and crying. After the smoke and dust cleared, I saw 20 to 30 people who were dead, and about 20 who were wounded."