Did Israel violate international laws in Lebanon? UN to probe next week
International humanitarian law in action, here's the story. The United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk is sending an assessment mission to Lebanon next week to examine violations of international law and human rights law by all parties in the Israel-Lebanon hostilities. The toll is heavy, Lebanon's health ministry counts over 3,600 deaths since March, more than a million people displaced, and about 1.24 million facing emergency levels of food insecurity. What's exam relevant is the framework, international humanitarian law governs conduct in war, and UN fact-finding missions document violations for accountability. So remember the name Volker Turk, the UN human rights commissioner, and this first assessment mission to Lebanon.
A team of investigators will be deployed to Lebanon next week to assess potential violations of international law by all parties involved inhostilities between Israel and Lebanon, United Nations human rights commissioner Volker Turk announced on Wednesday.
The announcement comes as 16 people were killed in Israeli air strikes on Tyre and its surrounding areas in southern Lebanon on the same day, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported.
It comes a week after Israel and Lebanonagreed to renew their fragile ceasefirethat would ban Hezbollah militants from“pilot” security zonesbuilt inside Lebanon, according to the Associated Press. However, Lebanon rejected the truce, citing its emphasis on a “complete cessation of Hezbollah fire and the evacuation of all Hezbollah operatives” without any mentions of halt on Israeli strikes,Al Jazeerareported.
Announcing the investigation, UN human rights chief Turk said, “It’s the first time that we are sending this assessment mission, and the idea is indeed to look at violations by all parties – violations of international law, violations of international human rights law, and to document this, and eventually to report back to you on our findings.”
In May, Lebanese Information Minister Paul Morcos had toldReutersthat Lebanon’s Prime Minister, Nawaf Salam, emphasised during a regular cabinet meeting the importance of continuing to document potential crimes and to submit them to the UN.
Morcos also informedReutersabout an agreement that was reached between Salam and the UN human rights chief at the time, entailing a visit to conduct investigations in Lebanon in the near future.
According to the Lebanon’s Ministry of Health, Israeli attacks have killed at least 3,696 people and injured 11,413 others since March 2, when the country was pulled into thewar involving United States, Israel, and Iran.
The attacks on Lebanon began after Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel, in response to consistent Israeli strikes on the country and the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Over 3,600 people have been killed in Israeli strikes on Lebanon so far and more than one million Lebanese are displaced, according to the news agency.
The crisis is now threatening food security, with nearly one in four people in Lebanon — about 1.24 million people — expected to face emergency levels of food insecurity until August this year, a UN food security report from April stated.
Citing an increase in humanitarian concerns, the Association of Christian Border Villages in southern Lebanon has also urged the government to “immediately open safe humanitarian and medical corridors” allowing civilians, aid workers and emergency teams to reach isolated communities caught in the tensions,Reutersreported.
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