This is a guest post by Michelle Sieff of the American Jewish Committee.
Today, buried in the New York Times, Somini Sengupta reports that in Sri Lanka UN workers and their families came under heavy shelling during recent fighting between government troops and rebel Tamil Tigers. Nine civilians died and more than twenty were wounded. She describes the UN response:
A United Nations official, speaking Tuesday on condition of anonymity, said the team on the ground had suspected that the rebels were firing at government forces from close to where civilians were taking shelter. “Both sides are egregiously flouting humanitarian norms and principles, and as a result civilians are dying,” the official said.
I have a question - and it’s a genuine question, not a rhetorical one. Why do UN officials in Sri Lanka acknowledge that when rebels are fighting near civilian areas, they are at least partly to blame for the loss of civilian life, but when it comes to Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, they quickly, and with such certainty, publicly blame only Israel for civilian losses?
Moreover, 2 days of riots in Madagascar have left 34 dead. I can hardly wait for indymedia to claim it’s a zionist war crime.
Some good news on the UN front:
United Nations Humanitarian Affairs Chief John Holmes blasted Hamas Tuesday for its “cynical” use of civilian facilities during recent hostilities in the Gaza Strip.
“The reckless and cynical use of civilian installations by Hamas and indiscriminate firing of rockets against civilian populations are clear violations of international humanitarian law,” Holmes told the UN Security Council.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1059475.html
Michelle, part of the reason why the UN behaves quite differently when it comes to the I/P conflict is here:
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3662945,00.html
– which is based on this:
http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/templateC04.php?CID=306
UNRWA is the biggest UN agency, and about 99 percent of its staff is Palestinian. So it’s probably a bit much to expect neutrality.