Prof's Nazi-Israeli Comparison Stirs Uproar

Israel alleges bias, but Jewish rapporteur draws wide praise

(NEWSER) - A UN team investigating possible war crimes by the Israeli army and Hamas has arrived in the Gaza Strip for a weeklong fact-finding mission. Israel is refusing to cooperate with what it calls a "masquerade," alleging that the UN Human Rights Council is unfairly biased. But the selection of Richard Goldstone, a South African Jew with experience in Yugoslavia and Rwanda, as head of the inquiry has given the commission greater legitimacy, reports the BBC. More»

(NEWSER) - A Pat Oliphant cartoon is an attack on Israel, not "hideously anti-Semitic," writes blogger Emily Moulton in Gather. The controversial cartoon shows a woman carrying a small child labeled "Gaza" being pursued by a headless Nazi pushing a giant Star of David with teeth. "The cartoon is a political statement about Israel, not an attack on Jewish people," Moulton notes. More»

Human Rights Watch finds army fired white phosphorus at civilians

(NEWSER) - Israel's military committed war crimes by repeatedly firing white phosphorus into crowded areas of Gaza, Human Rights Watch said today. A report by the group alleges that Israel chose not to use less dangerous smoke shells and even fired the incendiary agent at the main UN compound in the Strip. White phosphorus is not illegal when used as a smokescreen, but it causes deep burns reaching as far as the bone when it touches human skin. More»

Admits deadly shells may have hit civilian areas, violating law

(NEWSER) - Under pressure from the international community, Israel has admitted its troops might have inappropriately used white phosphorus in attacks on Gaza, and has launched an investigation. International law only permits the caustic chemical for creating smokescreens in troop areas, which wouldn’t explain hits on United Nations facilities in Gaza, the Guardian reports. More»

Amid tenuous ceasefire, officials wonder if they have weakened Hamas

(NEWSER) - As the world waits to see whether the truce declared this weekend in Gaza will hold, Israelis are asking themselves just what the 3 weeks of vicious fighting has achieved. There is hope that damage to tunnels may prevent Hamas from rearming and resuming firing rockets across the border, at least at the previous volume. But Hamas remains in power in Gaza, writes Ethan Bronner in the New York Times, and the attacks don't appear to have succeeded in driving a wedge between the group and Gazans. More»