15 Sept 2009

UN condemns 'war crimes' in Gaza

There is evidence that both Israeli and Palestinian forces committed war crimes in the recent Gaza conflict, the official UN report says.

gaza

The report criticises Israel for using "disproportionate force" and "collective punishment " during the three-week assault ending January 2009. It also condemned Palestinian rocket attacks, which sparked the offensive.

Palestinians and human rights groups say more than 1,400 Gazans were killed, but Israel puts the figure at 1,166.

Israel, which had refused to co-operate with the UN fact-finding team, said the report was "clearly one-sided".

BBC NEWS