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Israeli officials warn against support for UN report
A jittery Israeli government reacted furiously yesterday after a top British diplomat voiced support for aspects of a UN report that could lead to prosecution of Israeli army officers for alleged war crimes.
The UK ambassador to the UN, John Sawers, told Israel Army radio that the report on last winter's Gaza war contains "some very serious details which need to be investigated by both the Palestinian authorities and the Israeli authorities."
He added that "serious information" in the document gives rise to the suspicion that violations of the laws of war were committed.
The remarks, three days before the report is expected to be raised in the security council at Libya's behest, highlighted a British position that is rhetorically distinct from that of Washington, which has been strongly backing an Israeli campaign to scuttle the report on the grounds it is biased.
Mr. Sawers took issue with the prevalent Israeli idea that the commission headed by South African judge Richard Goldstone had reached its conclusions in advance of its research. "This investigation was led by a serious figure, Richard Goldstone, a South African Jew with long experience in justice. It's not as if he was in any way biased," he said.