mr president it is very clear that the parties to this conflict are failing to respect international humanitarian law and that the civilian population of gaza is consequently paying a very heavy price
there must be accountability in international law where such warfare principles as proportionality and non-discrimination are not respected
one of the tenets of a just war provides that conduct should be governed by the principle of proportionality
the force used must be proportional to the wrong endured
unfortunately we have seen a large degree of carelessness by the israelis
while acknowledging the fact that hamas began the rocket attacks against israel the israeli reaction has in my opinion been disproportionate
the numbers speak for themselves over nine hundred palestinians have been killed in contrast to a much smaller number of israelis
israel must realise its responsibility to measure its use of force right away in compliance with international law
on the other hand it cannot be overlooked that hamas is still listed as a terrorist organisation by the eu and continues to refuse to renounce its arms struggle
not only that but hamas has consistently declined to recognise israel's right to exist
hamas and other palestinian armed groups must recognise that the people of southern israel have a right to live without bombardment
