Israel blocks UN mission to probe killings in Gaza

[burythehatchet]

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-12/12/content_5471486.htm

GENEVA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- A UN rights mission to probe Israeli's killing of 19 Palestinians last month in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun has been canceled because Israel did not authorize the trip, a UN official said here on Monday.

The mission, led by South Africa's Nobel Peace laureate Desmond Tutu, was dispatched by the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council.

...

But the mission has been called off, because Israeli authorities did not grant Tutu and his team the necessary travel authorization, the UN official said.

The Human Rights Council voted to send the fact-finding mission last month after condemning the Beit Hanoun incident, in which more than 19 civilians, mostly women and children, were killed by Israeli shelling on Nov. 8.

[sam sarrha]

1. is anyone supprised, ...worse does anyone care..?? looks like Jimmy was right

[oberliner]

2. Just out of curiosity

Why did you choose China's official government press agency as your source?

The same story can be found on Reuters, AP, etc.

Also I think this info was already presented in this thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=124x157104#158733

[Tom Joad]

3. It reminds me, tragically, of an effort elsewhere in the world to deny

history. An attempt to remove some very real, and in this case very recent, historical facts from the world's eyes.

Historical denial and revisionism. Disgusting and to be resisted wherever it appears.

[oberliner]

4. This reminds you of Holocaust denial?

Perhaps I misunderstood this post.

It seems that you are implying that the cancellation of the UNHRC's investigation in Gaza is similar in some respects to the group of people meeting in Iran for their conference on the holocaust.

If so, I find that to be offensive.

I apologize if this was not the comparision you were attempting to make.

[Tom Joad]

5. Perhaps you did misunderstand. It reminds me of the effort of any

government to rewrite history to its own liking, for political purposes. Yes, I would agree that the effort in Iran to rewrite history is repulsive and deserving of condemnation.
I also think that Bush's effort to whitewash his criminality (that is continuing today, and will continue next week) in Iraq is fully deserving of our condemnation.

This is just another example to block the eyes of the world from a crime against humanity. And make no mistake, Olmert's actions in Palestine is a crime against humanity, war crimes against a civilian population. This particular incident is not an aberration.

It is Not my intention to say Bush's crimes or Olmert's crimes match that of Hitler (if that is the only standard the world has before it acts, we really are in trouble). It is my intention to say that we see here an effort to impede an important international investigation.

This is not good for anyone.