Editorial

Israel committing war crimes

Say no to military adventurism
By accusing Israel's latest military atrocities in Lebanon as war crimes, Amnesty International has said something that the saner people of the world have been saying from day one. In the report - "Deliberate destruction or 'collateral damage?' Israeli attacks against civilian infrastructure", the London-based human rights group said that the Israeli army and airforce had deliberately targeted civilian infrastructure in the name of attacking Hezbollah militia hideouts inside the country, thereby causing wanton destruction of property and loss of civilian lives, including that of numerous children. We are appalled to find out from the report that, "There was an Israeli policy of deliberate destruction of non-military targets. Israel's assertion that the attacks on the infrastructure were lawful is manifestly wrong."

We understand the human rights group started its research into the nature of the attacks right from the beginning and collected information and relevant images from all possible authentic sources before concluding that many of the violations, both indiscriminate and disproportionate, fall within the category of war crimes. In support of the accusation, the think tanks pointed at the extensive destruction of power and water plants as well as transport system essential for food and other humanitarian relief. This they claimed was an integral part of a military strategy.

The worst part of the sordid story is, despite vivid satellite images and media coverage of the destroyed buildings and human loss that flooded the world media channels from the very outset, Israel's killing machine did not show any intention to stop its rampage. It went on and on dropping lethal bombs on residential areas and pounding villages with artillery shells, all in the name of fighting an enemy that was perhaps microscopic when compared with the size of Israeli military. If such deliberate destruction and killings do not meet the definition of war crime then what does?

We fail to comprehend how long-lasting peace in the Middle-East can be ensured with a trigger-happy Israeli military continuing to bully its neighbours. The superpowers must make its leaders appreciate the potential of peaceful coexistence for the holistic development of the entire region.