As expected, the resolution adopted by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on July 3, condemning Israel based on the report of the UN panel probing Operation Protective Edge in the Gaza Strip, provoked scanting criticism on Jerusalem's part. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was quick to condemn the condemners, stating that Israel not only assiduously upholds the equal rights of all its citizens, but also “acts in accordance with international law.” Once again claims were heard that the UNHRC picks on Israel, which adheres strictly to its “purity of arms” military ethical doctrine, while ignoring far worse crimes against humanity committed by other states.
Netanyahu ignored the fact that three days before the UNHRC’s decision, the Associated Press reported on a harsh UN report about war crimes being committed in South Sudan. Survivors of the attacks by the military there recounted that South Sudanese soldiers and their allies killed civilians, burned down and destroyed villages and forced some 100,000 people to flee their homes. Some reported kidnappings and sexual abuse of women and girls, a few of whom were burned alive in their homes.
