With thanks to European Kafir for drawing this very interesting article in the The Jerusalem Post to my attention:
Switzerland said Monday that Israel has been violating international law in its Gaza offensive by heavy destruction and endangering civilians in acts of collective punishment banned under the Geneva conventions on the conduct of warfare.Mark Alexander
"A number of actions by the Israeli defense forces in their offensive against the Gaza Strip have violated the principle of proportionality and are to be seen as forms of collective punishment, which is forbidden," the Swiss Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
"There is no doubt that Israel has not taken the precautions required of it in international law to protect the civilian population and infrastructure," it said. The statement did not name the Geneva Conventions, but it referred to provisions of the 1949 treaty, which is regarded as the cornerstone of international law on the obligations of warring and occupying powers.
Switzerland, as the depository of the conventions, has a responsibility to call meetings if it finds general problems with the implementation of the treaty, but it does not have any special powers to interpret the document. Switzerland: Israel violating int'l law
3 comments:
This is simply absurd! The Geneva Conventions were drafted more than fifty years ago to establish conventions of war between civilized peoples. They clearly do not apply in the Middle East conflict as it is a war of modern, civilized people against sixth-century barbarians.
UIP:
That's an excellent point. The Geneva Convention was never conceived for terrorists.
Geneva Convention is ONE of the international agreements that must be reviewed - ASAP
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