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The Human Rights Council today took up the issue of follow-up to its decisions, discussing among others the report of the Commission of Inquiry on Lebanon, mandated: “(a) to investigate the systematic targeting and killings of civilians by Israel in Lebanon; (b) to examine the types of weapons used by Israel and their conformity with international law; and (c) to assess the extent and deadly impact of Israeli attacks on human life, property, critical infrastructure and the environment.” Stelios Perrakis, Commissioner of the Commission of Inquiry on Lebanon, said the conflict, which lasted 33 days, inflicted serious damages and losses on Lebanon. It had exacted a heavy human toll, with 1,191 people reported dead, 4,409 injured, and 900,000 people fleeing their homes; roads, factories, water sources, cultural and economic infrastructure and homes were affected, among many others. It would take a long time before Lebanon could rebuild the country, and the help of the international community would be required in this regard. Basic humanitarian principles were absent throughout the conflict, and there had been indiscriminate use of force against Lebanese civilians. Human rights had not been respected. Mr. Perrakis said the use of some weapons was illegal, such as the use of cluster munitions, which were mainly fired during the last 72 hours of the conflict. Their use was excessive and not justified by military necessity, and went beyond the arguments of proportionality. They were a flagrant violation. There had been violation of the right to life and property. Israel had violated obligations following from international law and humanitarian law, and it had disregarded its international and individual responsibility. In the context of the interactive dialogue, a number of speakers commended the report for its timely presentation and highlighting the impact of the conflict while some delegations said it lacked impartiality and was one-sided. Mentions of children The report submits a number of recommendations to the Human Rights Council, including that the Council should promote initiatives and call for the mobilisation of the international community to assist Lebanon and its people; the Council should encourage the UN system (UNESCO, UNEP, UNHCR, UNICEF, WHO), and the Bretton Woods institutions in their multi-sectoral programmes and projects to promote and undertake precise and concrete actions, including with professional and technical expertise in the necessary reconstruction efforts (buildings, bridges, cleaning of areas affected by clusters, environment, archaeological sites (Byblos); and the Council should give careful attention to the fate of child victims of the armed conflict. National institutions and specialised international agencies should work together to effectively assist the Government of Lebanon in the implementation of health programmes, rehabilitation projects and mental health care initiatives for children; the Council should promote and monitor the obligation to “respect and ensure respect” of international humanitarian law by all parties in a conflict, including non-State actors; and the Council should take the initiative to promote urgent action to include cluster munitions to the list of weapons banned under international law. The conflict inflicted serious damages and losses on Lebanon. It had exacted a heavy human toll, with 1,191 people reported dead, 4,409 injured, and 900,000 people fleeing their homes; roads, factories, water sources, cultural and economic infrastructure and homes were affected, among many others. It would take a long time before Lebanon could rebuild the country, and the help of the international community would be required in this regard. Basic humanitarian principles were absent throughout the conflict, and there had been indiscriminate use of force against Lebanese civilians. Human rights had not been respected. The policy of assimilating each person to a potential enemy had caused violations of human rights, and amounted to collective punishment. There were attacks on civilian convoys, including on health personnel and ICRC ambulances. One third of victims were children, and also women and migrant workers. There had been attacks on observers, and there was no justification for the thirty direct attacks that took place, including that that ended in the deaths of United Nations personnel. Some weapons used were illegal, such as the cluster munitions which were mainly fired during the last 72 hours of the conflict. Their use was excessive and not justified by military necessity, and went beyond the arguments of proportionality. They were a flagrant violation. There had been violations of the right to life and property. There were extrajudicial summary executions. Israel had violated obligations following from international law and humanitarian law, and it had disregarded its international and individual responsibility. It was Israel’s duty to investigate these violations and determine who was responsible, provide redress for victims, and punish the offenders, or the culture of impunity would not come to an end. The Council should, among other things mobilise the international community to help Lebanon to rebuild, promote and monitor respect for international humanitarian law by all parties, and promote the inclusion of cluster munitions in the list of weapons banned under international law. The Council needed to embark on this fight, and should work on a solution to such situations. JEAN-MAURICE RIPERT (France) said Lebanon was in favour of creating an international tribunal in order to charge those who had brought about the murder of Rafik Hariri. All the members of the Inquiry Commission were thanked, but it was regretted that the members of the Commission could not go to Israel to investigate reports of launches of rockets by Hezbollah. This was why France had not been able to vote in favour of the resolution. The military forces of Israel should stop attacks on military objects and provide humanitarian assistance to civilians throughout the country. The partners to the conflict should respect international humanitarian law, and respect humanitarian corridors. Safe passage for humanitarian convoys should be ensured in the Security Council and in the field. France had been watching the offensive and the operations which caused about 1,000 deaths and 4,000 injured. Humanitarian rights were flouted on both sides of the conflict, with deaths of children, and the use of cluster bombs. The work of the Commission showed once more the need for field inspections. ABDULLA ABDULLATIF ABDULLA (Bahrain) said Bahrain appreciated the report of the Commission of Inquiry on Lebanon. Israel had committed flagrant violations of human rights by targeting women, children and disabled people, and destroying the civilian infrastructure. These acts clearly constituted crimes of war. The report should not have gone beyond the scope of its mandate by also dealing with matters that were only of the concern of Lebanon as a sovereign State. Bahrain underlined the importance for the international community to urgently help Lebanon in its reconstruction efforts. IDRISS JAZAIRY (Algeria) said the report was timely and it had emphasised the excessive use of force by Israeli armed forces. It had also characterised the conflict as an aggression. The report had indicated that one-third of the victims of the conflict were children. However, the report was short of explicit mention of the violations of human rights by Israel. SUNU MAHADI SOEMARNO (Indonesia) said the grave situation in Lebanon was an issue of importance. It was very important for the Council to ensure that all its resolutions and decisions were fully and duly implemented. The 135-page report had provided an overview on the terms of reference, approaches and activities of the Commission. Although the report referred to the limitations imposed by the mandate, it had remained within the boundaries of this mandate. The pain of the people of Lebanon was shared, and their perspective understood. It was encouraging that the report also showed the consequences of the conflict on vulnerable groups, namely women, children and the elderly. It was the duty of the Council to ensure that the human rights of all Lebanese could be re-established and protected. The human rights and fundamental freedoms of the Lebanese people should be safe from any further use of indiscriminate and disproportionate use of force against them. JOAO CLEMENTE BAENA SOARES, Commissioner of the Commission of Inquiry on Lebanon, said the strict implementation of the recommendations at the national level was essential. The children of Lebanon had suffered most and the existing instruments concerning children should further be improved to protect innocent childhood from the dire consequences of conflicts. He was most disquieted by the use of cluster bombs. The issue of cluster bombs should be dealt with properly in order to ban their use. Further information
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