NAZARETH (PIC)– Three Palestinian legal institutions have filed a petition on Sunday before the Israeli Supreme Court asking the Israeli attorney-general and the military prosecutor to prosecute IOF generals for committing war crimes in Gaza Strip in two separate military operations.
Respondents in the case included Samuel Zakai the head of Gaza region Dan Hariel the southern region commander Moshe Ya’alon former IOF chief of staff Shaul Mofaz the former Israeli war minister and the Israeli occupation government among other respondents according to the petitioners.
According to the petition the IOF troops committed war crimes against Palestinian civilians in Rafah district in the period from 17-24 of May 2005 where tens of Palestinian citizens including at least 17 minors were killed.
The IOF operation was dubbed as “rainbow” where the IOF troops also demolished at least 167 Palestinian homes.
The second military operation was dubbed by the IOF leadership as “days of repentance” and started at the end of September 2004. It lasted for more than two weeks in northern Gaza Strip where tens of Palestinian civilians including 27 children were massacred the petition highlighted.
In the operation at least 91 Palestinian houses were reduced to rubbles displacing around 143 Palestinian families the plaintiffs furthermore underlined in the petition.
One of the complainants the Adala (justice) legal center affirmed “Such IOF aggressions constitute plain war crimes beyond reasonable doubt as stipulated in international laws and conventions”.
The center also shrugged off IOF allegations that the two operations were carried out for security reasons citing statements of IOF generals that the purpose of the two operations was to punish the Palestinian people and to wipe out as many Palestinian homes as they could in order to expand the Salahuddin axis near the Rafah crossing point in southern Gaza Strip.
